Ways of the Dragonborn: The Professional (1)
by Samuel Keller
Summary: What separates the adventurer from the common rogue? Three things: Class, gold, and wit.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello people! If you are reading this, you are on three people: 1) People who have heard about this story from my previous story and have already read the other one of this series 2) People who have also heard about this story and are reading this one first for no apparent reason or 3) You saw this and said to yourself, "Hmm, why not read this one?" Now I apologize for the long intro, so let's get this thing on the tracks!**

Je-Dal crouched in the darkness, studying the sight before him. The floor below him was covered in dust and grime. Sarcophagi stood on the walls and a treasure chest sat on the other side of the room.

"Let's go Je-Dal" a voice from behind said. "Come on, I'm decomposing here."

"Wait Ewald" he snapped pulling out a long bow. "These Nords weren't stupid with their artifacts."

He strung a steel arrow and pulled back the string. He aimed briefly and released.

The arrow soared through the air and hit a pot hanging from the ceiling. It fell and landed in a pool of oil. It burst into flames and spread across the entire floor.

"That's why I go first" stated Je-Dal looking at his partner.

"Shut up."

The two were an odd combo. Je-Dal was an Argonian and an expert thief. Ewald was a Dunmer who was also an experienced battlemage.

They were treasure hunters who brought good amounts of wealth to merchants in many towns. They had recently discovered a Nordic ruin south of Falkreach named Black River Falls. So far they found a couple of gemstones and a few sets of armor.

The fire settled down and the Dunmer pulled out his steel mace. "Let's go!"

Ewald jumped down the stairs and some coffins popped open. Out stepped bodies, ones that had rotten so far bones and organs were clearly visible. Draugrs.

"Woo hoo!"exclaimed the elf setting his left hand on fire.

The Argonian rolled his eyes and shot an arrow at the furthest draugr. It collapsed and he notched another shot.

Ewald sprayed a draugr with flames and smashed its head with the mace. "Come on Je-Dal! You're letting me have all the fun!"

"Because I'm smarter than that" he replied firing an arrow.

The battlemage laughed and hit another draugr. "Well I'm glad for that!"

They emptied the room and Ewald walked to the chest. He opened it examined the contents.

"Awesome!" he yelled holding up a Dwarven war axe. He whirled it and smiled.

"Mace, you've been replaced" he said tossing the mace aside.

Je-Dal joined him and grabbed a necklace. It was made of gold and held a large emerald.

"This outta fetch a good price" he muttered slipping it into his pocket.

The elf pulled out a large key and looked at the door to his left.

"Let's see if we can't find some more."

They walked into the room and Ewald whistled. The room was huge, tall enough to hold a ship. At the far end was a large round structure made of pure stone. It looked almost Daedric with the curved etches and markings. On the walls were several chests evenly spaced from each other.

"I've died and gone to heaven!" the Dunmer stated running to the chests.

Je-Dal stared at the stone structure. It was like it had been etched of solid rock.

He walked closer and saw near the bottom was some etchings. It was an unknown language, not even slightly resembling anything Je-Dal had seen.

One word stood above the rest. It glowed like pure magicka was emitting from it.

"Je-Dal!" shouted Ewald. "What the hell are you doing?"

Je-Dal ignored him. He touched the word and suddenly felt power run through him. He felt like he had been hit by lightning (a sensation he had already experienced before).

"Feim" he muttered to no one. Somehow, he could understand the word before him.

Ewald suddenly clasped his shoulder. "You alright? You look like you saw a ghost."

The Argonian shook it off. "Let's just leave."

Ewald shrugged. "Fine by me. I already got the stuff."

They heard a loud crumbling noise and they turned. They had failed to notice the sarcophagus in the middle of the room. It opened and out stepped a Draugr Scourge Lord.

"Oh shit" muttered Ewald.

Je-Dal notched an arrow and nailed the beast in the neck. It roared and Ewald whirled the axe.

"Protect me axe!" he shouted running to the beast.

The Scourge Lord raised his broadsword and swung. Ewald ducked under it and smashed the axe into his chest. The armor crumbled slightly and he felt it loosen.

The Draugr recovered and made a deadly overhand arc with the sword. The elf side stepped and rammed the axe into its shoulder. It snapped and the thing dropped the sword.

Then an arrow slammed into its eye. It roared in pain and pulled out a mace.

Ewald sliced his axe into its knee and set it to the ground. He kicked it flat and brought the axe up.

"Good riddance" he muttered smashing the axe into its head. Its lights died and the elf breathed a sigh.

"Next time, you go first" he said looking at Je-Dal.

**Apologies for the shortness, but I hate introducing characters slowly. It's not fun, you know? Just saying.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Now, the main question is of course: Who is the Dragonborn? The Argonian archer, or the Dunmer spellsword? A good question indeed.**

The treasure hunting duo walked down the streets of Whiterun, looking at the houses on either side.

"I told you Belethor's store was to the right" Je-Dal said punching Ewald on the shoulder.

The Dark Elf was impudent. "I can't read remember? Don't trust me for directions."

The Argonian rolled his eyes. They had already sold the armor at the Warmaiden's and were going to sell the gems.

'You don't need to read. We've been here three times."

"Two months ago!" defended Ewald.

Je-Dal chuckled and walked out of the Cloud district.

* * *

"There you go" Je-Dal stated placing the gems on the counter.

Belethor examined the stones. "Well I must say I can see my reflection in this one. Not sure that's a good thing."

The store-owner shrugged. "Thousand septims. Ain't going higher."

"Twelve hundred" interjected Ewald.

"Twelve?" exclaimed Belethor. "I need to make some profit mate. I'll go to eleven."

Je-Dal placed the emerald necklace on the counter. "Thirteen."

"My God" muttered the Breton. "Twelve fifty and I'll throw in this spell tome. Frostbite, I think."

The two treasure hunters shared a look.

"Deal" said the Dunmer shaking his hand.

"Bout time" stated Belethor grabbing the treasures. "You two will put me out of business one of these days."

"Shut it" warned Je-Dal grabbing the septims. "Those gems were worth three thousand. I was being generous."

"Which I am glad for" said Belethor smiling.

They walked form the shop and Ewald muttered, "Sleazy old man."

"Yes he is" agreed Je-Dal. 'But that's an interesting spell. You can keep it."

They stopped talking when a shadow flew over them. There wasn't a cloud in the sky.

The Argonian looked up and saw a large shape sailing over him. Its purple wings were stretched wide and its long neck was extended in the sky. It was obviously flying to the southeast.

"Dragon! Holy crap!" yelled Ewald.

Guards began running to it, holding bows and swords. One looked at the two and ordered, 'Don't just stand there! Fight!"

Je-Dal raised his long bow and began running to catch it. His partner raised his axe and ran beside him.

"I'm gonna kick some reptile ass" Ewald stated sprinting beside him. "No offense."

"None taken. I'm thinking the same thing."

The dragon landed on a field a few hundred yards from the city. Je-Dal and Ewald were the first to reach it.

The dragon was a huge monster. Its scales were the shade of lavender and its eyes were golden. Its horns were long and pointed and its wings were the color of grapes.

"This bastard's big" Ewald muttered. They were hiding behind a ridge, waiting for reinforcements.

Je-Dal nodded. They'd need more then a few arrows and an axe to kill it. They needed the guards.

"I'm going to sneak behind it" said the reptilian crouching and pulling out a steel dagger. "Distract the thing."

Ewald nodded. He knew what his partner was thinking.

The Dunmer stepped out of cover and yelled, "Bring it dragon!"

The thing looked at him and shouted a word.

"YOL!"

Flames erupted from its mouth and Ewald laughed. "My Dunmer blood doesn't even warm from that!"

He swung his axe and smashed it into the side of its head. It tried to bite him, but he rolled to the side.

"Missed me!" he joked activating Frostbite. He sprayed the beast and whacked with the axe.

Je-Dal moved as soon as Ewald had managed to turn the monster ninety degrees. He kept low and moved to the tail. The dragon had its full attention on the elf, not even looking for the other.

The Argonian jumped on its back and stabbed between the scales. It roared in pain, and tried to glimpse the assailant behind him. He was rewarded with a chop from Ewald.

"Don't you turn away from me!" demanded the elf swinging the deadly piece of Dwarven ingenuity.

Je-Dal stabbed again into its flesh and pulled. It tore the scales away and the dragon sent a bone-shaking roar through the air.

The reptilian felt no pity. He raised his long dagger and stabbed into the moist skin.

The dragon was dying and it knew it. Too much blood had been shed. It couldn't even fly with this much pain. Now it had one goal-to kill the men who had dared to face it.

Ewald hit the dragon's head and it snapped back. He backed up and sprayed it with ice crystals.

"Bad dragon! Naughty!"

Je-Dal climbed up to its neck and reached its head. He raised the dagger high and plunged it straight in the eye.

The dragon let out one final roar and collapsed, dead.

The Argonian jumped off and hugged his partner. "We did it."

Ewald laughed. "First time I killed a dragon. I kinda liked it!"

The Dunmer walked to the corpse and took off a set of scales. "This'll sell for at least a hundred. Not to mention the bones."

The corpse seemed to glow for a second, and then lit on fire.

"Holy..!" declared Ewald stepping back.

The skin fell like ash and its eyes disappeared. The wings burned endlessly and something emerged from the body.

Orange rays of light emitted from the beast and flew over to Je-Dal. He took a step back as he felt the rays enter his body. It was not painful, it was invigorating. But it was not just energy. It felt like knowledge.

The rays stopped and Ewald looked at him. "What the hell did you do?"

Je-Dal shrugged. "No clue."

The elf recovered quick. "But look at this thing. Half the scales are gone!"

He went to the corpse and grabbed the remainder. "Least they ain't burnt" he muttered slipping them into his pocket.

The next hour was spent taking the bones from the beast. Guards came by and admired the sight, congratulating them on their kill. Of course they asked why it was only a skeleton, but they said they had no clue why.

"Bad luck" most of the guards answered.

Ewald sighed and hung up his axe. "Come on. We scrapped this thing this thing dry.'

Je-Dal put the last chunk of bone in his pack. "I think Markarth would give a good price for these."

"Agreed."

**So, it is revealed who is the Dragonborn. But how will he react to being Dragonborn? That's the truly important question.**


	3. Chapter 3

**OK, so I guess it was a little obvious who the Dragonborn was. But still, he isn't exactly a hero.**

Ewald slammed the mug down on the counter, belching as he did so.

"It's empty" he said almost to himself.

The owner grabbed the mug and quickly filled it again. He appreciated the coin, but this one could lead to trouble.

The elf took another swig and looked at his partner. Neither was completely sober.

"I thought we were looking for rumors" the Dunmer stated sipping his mead. "But the only thing I'm finding is the bottom of my mug."

Je-Dal nodded. "We are. We just have to wait."

"I hate waiting" Ewald muttered. He bit into a meat pie and washed it down with another mouth of mead.

The two treasure hunters were inside the Sleeping Giant Inn enjoying the drinks. After selling various wares in Markarth and coming up dry for future sites of their adventuring, they decided to head to Riverwood.

"I told you we should've gone to the Bannered Mare" snapped the elf. "More people go there."

The Argonian nodded. "True. But those people live in Whiterun. We want hunters and adventurers' advice. This place is swarming with them."

That part was true. They had already met several people who were passing through Riverwood with pelts on their backs and gold in their pouches. Sadly, they had not found any place worthy of their exploring.

"The only thing we're going to get out this is a nasty morning" Ewald complained.

Je-Dal glanced at him. "Drowning it in mead won't help either."

Ewald was a minor celebrity for his endurance against alcohol. He had beaten Nords in contests of mead and liquor.

The elf shrugged. "Please. I'm still half sober."

A man walked into the inn. His face was adorned with age and his hair hunt past his shoulders. His shirt was ragged and he looked like he was having a bad day.

The man sat in the corner of the room and the owner placed a flagon of mead next to him. The man muttered his thanks and began the old practiced art of drinking.

After four minutes, he looked up at the two treasure hunters and said, "You two are adventurers, aren't you?"

Je-Dal turned fully to him. "Maybe. Say we are. Why do you ask?"

The man smiled. "I knew it. Never fails. I can tell because of your physique. Not extremely muscular, but quick and agile. Just what any treasure hunter needs."

Ewald took a notice of the stranger. "Why do you care?"

The man chuckled. "I've got a story. You two might like to hear it."

Ewald and Je-Dal looked at each other for a moment. "Go on" said the Argonian picking up his tankard.

The man settled down, likely because it would be a long story.

"In the mountain pass between here and Ivarstead, lies a cave. In that cave is a Nordic ruin, one as old as Windhelm. Inside that ruin is something unique. Something that is the few among many."

By now the two adventurers were practically drooling. Nordic ruin generally translated to gold in their mind.

"What is it?" asked Ewald.

The man grinned. "A flightless dragon. A dragon bound to the ruin with ancient magic. It hoards its treasure from the travelers it has eaten and rests there every night."

"How much treasure?" inquired Je-Dal.

The man chuckled. "A king's ransom in gold. And not just gold. Gems, weapons, armor, all sorts of treasure. All part of the dragon's hoard."

The owner laughed at them. "A dragon's treasure hoard? Stories old man. You're just a withered crow spouting rumors."

"It's true!" snapped the old man. "I saw it! I've got this scar to prove it!"

He rolled up his sleeve and exposed a large black mar. It was an old burn, probably at least decades of age.

"Why hasn't anyone tried to kill the dragon?" asked the elf.

The man rolled his sleeve back down. "Because it's hiding. With all the other dragons swooping into towns and burning fields, who cares about a non-flying one that stays in a small area?'

"Why doesn't it try to find a new home?"

The man shrugged. "I have no clue. But I'd love to find out."

"Same here" stated the Argonian. He was absolutely stoked to do something like this. "You got a map?"

The man nodded and pulled up a rolled piece of parchment. After looking at it affectionately for a moment, he handed it to them.

"I ask for only one slice of the treasure though" said the man looking at the two.

Ewald was hoping it wasn't too large. "What?"

"My sword. Beautiful weapon. I lost it when I went inside to explore. Its hilt has a mounted ruby in it and the blade is quicksilver. I would greatly appreciate it if you gave it to me."

The elf stuck out his hand. "Deal."

The man shook it warmly. "By the way, fi you die because of this, it ain't my fault."

Je-Dal laughed. "Don't worry, me and my friend have been doing this for a while."

**Yes. They have.**


	4. Chapter 4

**I do apologize for the slow rate that these are going (compared to the COD stories of the past), but I like the slow rate that I can do this. I ain't rushed, I'm not pressured. I can just write at any rate I feel like. I can see this story and all the other Dragonborn stories going to at least the high twenties. Maybe even thirties. And I hope you all enjoy them.**

Ewald shook the grogginess from his head for the umpteenth time that morning.

"Are we there yet?" asked the elf impatiently.

"No" answered Je-Dal simply.

The Dunmer groaned and kept walking.

The Argonian looked back at him. "You look horrible. I told you not you drink so much."

"Sticks and bones" Ewald replied rubbing his eyes. "I thought we'd be waiting till at least the afternoon."

"No point wasting time" defended Je-Dal walking crisply. "I warned you of that last night."

"When?"

"10:37, 10:53, 11:04, 12:36, and 12:49."

Ewald paused. "Damn, you're right."

The two had covered a few miles and were just getting to Helgen. The little town was a crossroads across the mountains.

"Hope there is some good mead there" Ewald stated drinking a sack of water.

Je-Dal looked at him. "You're already thinking of drinking more?"

"Hell yeah!" replied the Dunmer. "My sobriety is a disease and alcohol is the cure."

"Cure for living maybe" muttered the Argonian.

They turned a corner and gasped. Helgen was not bustling with people as they last remembered. It now lay in ruins.

"My God" stated Ewald.

Je-Dal had already began running to the gate. He forced it open and looked around. The stone towers in the town were crumbling alongside with the walls. Bodies lay on the streets and rubble adored the scene.

Ewald joined him and stared in horror. "What the hell happened?"

The Argonian didn't have an answer. He picked up a chunk of stone the size of his fist. It was burned black and was still hot.

"Dragon attack" he muttered to himself.

"A dragon did this?" repeated Ewald.

Je-Dal nodded. "These stones are burnt. Only a dragon can do this."

"Mother of Talos" whispered the elf.

The archer looked around. "Everyone's dead."

Then an arrow flew right past his head.

They ducked down and immediately sought cover beside various rocks.

"Bandits" Je-Dal stated to his partner.

"No shit" snapped Ewald. He frantically began trying to think of a spell.

"I don't have a distance spell." He swore loudly. "The best I got is a Lesser Ward,"

"You get to the tower" commented Je-Dal pulling out his bow. "I'll kill the archer."

Ewald jumped out of cover and charged up the ward. An arrow ricocheted off the magic and the elf walked forward.

Je-Dal got a clear view of the archer this time. He wore simple leather armor and held an Elven bow. He was serious.

The Argonian readied an arrow and fired. It nailed the archer straight in the chest and he dropped the bow.

"He's wounded" yelled the reptilian

"Right!" nodded the Dark Elf. He sprinted into the tower and began climbing the stairs.

Je-Dal turned and saw they were not alone. More bandits armed with swords were coming from a small burnt house and Ewald was still tied up with the archer.

He quickly notched an arrow and fired. He stopped one dead and nailed another. By then the third had reached him and he ducked under the swing. He pulled out a dagger and stabbed the man in the neck. The bandit collapsed and Je-Dal turned to the fourth.

The fourth was holding a bow, and fired an arrow. The deadly missile approached quickly and the Argonian did something almost out of instinct.

"Feim!" he yelled bracing for impact.

The arrow sailed right through him. Je-Dal looked down. He had taken on the appearance of a ghost, almost blue and ethereal.

The bandit was about to fire another shot when an arrow slammed into him. He collapsed and Ewald walked to his partner.

"You OK?" he asked holding the Elven bow.

"Fine" replied Je-Dal. "I'm not sure what I did to dodge the shot."

"You didn't dodge" protested the Dunmer. "You absorbed it. It went straight through you."

Je-Dal looked at him. "Do you believe in legends?"

Ewald laughed. "I try to keep an open mind. Why?"

The Argonian felt his arm. It felt solid enough.

"I think we need to do a little research."

Ewald brushed it away. "Not now. I'm hung-over, and want to get with the money making. Let's go to the library later."

Je-Dal nodded. "Fine. But I requeest the bow."

The Dunmer handed it over. "OK by me. I ain't much for killing at a distance."

The archer dropped the long bow and slung the Elven piece of art on his shoulder.

"Come on. That dragon ain't gonna wait."

"It better" muttered Ewald. "My sobriety is coming back like a former girl of mine."

**Man, I love these guys. The others maybe cool and such, but these guys are the best pair I've made. I hope not they aren't THE best, but they are definitely one of my favorites.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Now this is the chapter I wanted to write the entire time. The dragon sequence. And this one is only the first of many in these stories.**

"Well that's about right" stated Je-Dal leaning on his moonstone bow.

The cave was a huge gaping hole in the side of the mountain. It was a hidden path located fairly close to the Orphan Rock. A few trees bypassed, and there it was.

Ewald whistled. "No wonder no one noticed. Who comes here anymore?"

The Argonian stretched his muscles. "Let's go."

The elf reached his Dwarven war axe. "Knock, knock. Let's kick some ass."

The two walked into the cave, ready to come out filthy rich.

A few feet in and Je-Dal stopped. "Hold up" he ordered crouching down.

"Something wrong?" asked the Dunmer.

"Observe" he muttered. He felt the ground and picked up some dirt.

"Ash" he stated rubbing it between his claws. "Definitely the right place."

"Anything else?"

The Argonian noticed a sword on the ground. It was black and edged grey.

"Definitely Draugr" he muttered putting down the artifact.

"At least the old man was right about the Nord ruin part" said Ewald.

Je-Dal looked at the room inside. It was mostly made of stone and held together by ancient pillars. Empty sarcophagi were all around the room and dust clattered the space.

"Let us proceed with caution" advised the reptilian humanoid. "I feel an old and evil presence."

"Probably my ex-wife" replied Ewald.

Je-Dal chuckled and took a few steps forward. No tiles appeared to be rigged and no tripwires were visible.

"The floor is safe" he stated to his partner.

"Goody" said the elf walking forward. He went over to a large chest and immediately opened it.

"Wait!" yelled the Argonian. He grabbed him and threw him from the container.

A large spiked ball swung from above and smashed into the space where Ewald would've been.

Je-Dal glared at the Dunmer. "I said the floor was safe. Not the chest."

Ewald chuckled. "I nearly got a haircut eh?"

"Not on my watch."

The elf walked over to the chest and picked up a large shield. It was made of Dwarven metal and shone brilliantly.

"At least a hundred" stated the treasure hunter.

Je-Dal snatched a ruby ring and examined it. "Nice" he muttered slipping it on his ring claw.

"Let's put the treasure here" Ewald advised putting the shield back. "I can't carry a shield I'm not going to use."

"Good logic" agreed the Argonian. He readied a new set of Orcish arrows and said, "Let's go."

Ewald opened the iron door and looked around. It was a large cave, expansive and forbidding. A waterfall pooled at the bottom of the room and a series of bridges connected the ridges of the cave to the bottom. The treasure hunters had entered at the very top of the expanse.

"Amazing design" commented Je-Dal. "This dragon has taste."

They walked down the bridge and they saw something at the bottom. It looked very similar to the one inside the Black River Falls except for, one thing.

A large dragon was perched on the top of the stone structure. It was a dark grey and its claws were stretched over the wall. The flesh on the wings were torn and incomplete between the bones.

The two treasure hunters crouched down and attempted to hide.

"Wait" whispered Je-Dal. "It's sleeping."

That was true. The thing's eyes were closed and it breathed the sighs of sleep.

"Let's just ditch it" protested Ewald. "That stuff we found is worth easily a thousand. I ain't fighting a dragon."

"It can't fly" protested the Argonian. "That takes away a huge advantage it has over us. Besides, I can land a good blow before it wakes up."

The Dunmer thought about it. "Fine, but don't die on me. I need someone to help carry the treasure."

Je-Dal nodded and pulled out his steel dagger. "Rush it when it wakes up, ok?"

Ewald gave him a thumbs up and the Argonian began approaching the dragon. He noticed countless bones were scattered around the floor and occasional bits of gold lay around those bodies.

The reptilian was about ten meters from the dragon when it opened its eyes. He froze instantly. Most people made the mistake of moving when detected. It was almost pitch-dark in the cave and there was little chance of him being seen.

The dragon turned its large red eyes to him and he still did not move. It could be just scanning.

"Drem yol lok Dovahkiin (Hello Dragonborn)."

So much for stealth.

"Zu voprodah hui (I did not expect you)."

Je-Dal gave a confused look. The dragon wasn't speaking any language he knew.

"Ah, you do not speak the tongue of the dov. Krosis. I was hoping for the contrary."

The dragon spread its wings, its damaged, torn wings.

"I am near the end of my life. I am older than any dov besides Alduin or Paarthunax. I care for neither."

"Why are you hiding?" asked the Argonian.

The dragon let out a sigh. "I am exiled. Alduin has returned, and I dare not approached him. The Dovahkiin will deal with him."

"Dovahkiin?"

"Dragonborn. The ones who can absorb of the soul of a dov and use the Thu'um. I knew you were one."

"I?"

"Yes. One of them. My insight is very limited towards who the others are. But you can relax. I have no intention to kill you.

Je-Dal eased slightly. The dragon was at least intelligent.

"But if you wish to take my treasure, I will not hesitate to kill you."

This made the Argonian slump. So much for negotiation.

"Well, that's a shame" stated Je-Dal pulling out his bow. "Because that's why I'm here."

The dragon snorted. "I may be old, but you're arrogant. I am Gethdurrein the Old, and I will destroy you if you touch my treasure! Now go!"

The treasure hunter notched an arrow. "Challenge accepted."

The arrow slammed into the dragon's head and it recoiled slightly. Then it let out a breath.

"So be it."

The dragon opened its mouth and shouted towards him.

"FO KRAH DIIN!"

A jet of ice came towards him and Je-Dal didn't flinch.

"FIEM!" he yelled back.

The frost passed all around him but didn't did not touch him.

"Ah, your voice is strong mortal!" proclaimed the dragon. "But mine is stronger!"

The dragon got down from the mound and began crawling to Je-Dal.

When it got struck by flames. It roared in pain and staggered away from the source.

Ewald had engulfed himself in pure fire. He looked at Je-Dal and said, "Nice conservation. But I think it still wants to kill us."

The Argonian didn't argue. He just shot another arrow at the beast.

The dragon was not afraid. A simple battlemage and archer was not the deadliest enemy he had ever faced.

"I am Gethdurrein, hear my Thu'um and wither!"

"KRIEN!" it bellowed at the two.

A blinding explosion of light engulfed the two and they covered their eyes.

"Goddamn it!" exclaimed Ewald.

Je-Dal recovered first. He fired another arrow and heard the impact.

The dragon breathed his frost breath again and Ewald ran to the beast. "You're screwed!"

He leaped in the air and landed on its head. The beast tried to shake the burning elf off, but the treasure hunter had pinned itself with his axe.

Je-Dal picked up a spare sword on the ground and stabbed into the dragon's head. It bellowed in pain and felt its blood pour to the floor.

These two were killing the dragon and it knew it. It tried one last time to throw off the crazed Dunmer, but with no avail.

Ewald brought his axe crushing into the dragon's head again and it collapsed on the floor.

The Argonian went up to the thing and stabbed the sword into its eye. It gave a pathetic whimper and died.

The elf jumped off and shook his partner's hand. "We did it! We killed another dragon!"

Je-Dal nodded, knowing what to expect.

The dragon began decaying, just like the one near Whiterun. This time he felt no fear. He knew his role.

"Dragonborn" he muttered absorbing the dragon's soul.

Ewald looked at him. "Dragonborn, eh? Was it your mom or dad that was the dragon?"

Je-Dal chuckled. "Not sure."

Ewald shrugged. "Big deal. We're treasure hunters, not heroes."

The Argonian looked at him. "Please. So I can absorb dragon souls? So what? There are other people who kill dragons. I'm a money-maker. Not a hero."

"Damn straight" Ewald replied cleaning his axe. "Let's go find that treasure."

They entered a second cove and stopped at the site. The treasure was a huge mound of gold, completely covering the floor.

It was almost a foot deep at the lowest and five feet at the highest. And not just gold.

Weapons, jewelry, armor, gems, books, anything that may be of remote value to anybody who ever has spent gold. It was a horde that was hundreds of years old.

At first they were stunned at the sight, and then Ewald jumped in and began singing.

"Oh, I once knew a man from old Cyrodiil, who was known for being mad as hell. He ranted and raved in old town bars, telling of lands here and far. He spoke of gold and treasure, as if it was the only thing that gave him pleasure. But I know now what he meant, for now I truly am content!"

He stopped for a moment to examine a sword beneath him. It shone of a red light from its Orcish metal.

"A fine enchanted sword. How nice."

He strapped it onto his waist and went right back to singing.

Je-Dal went through the ocean of gold and came to a large chest. He opened it and pulled out a small handle. It was black as ebony and looked like it had belonged on a dagger.

"Curious" he muttered putting it in his pocket.

A pounding noise suddenly entered his mind. He groaned and grasped at his head. It was like a troll was having a tantrum in his skull.

"Know this mortal" a deep voice bellowed from nowhere. "You have found the handle of my dagger. A tool I gave to those who have pleased me. It has been broken far too long. Bring the pieces to me, and I will reward you."

The pounding stopped and Je-Dal collapsed to the ground.

**I am sure your guess is probably sufficient here.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Well it's December, and I'm cold as a bitch! But writing stuff like this brings warmth to my heart.**

Je-Dal woke up to the sound of falling coins.

He opened his eyes and looked around. He had been taken outside the cave and put on a cloth mat. A small fire was burning a meter from him and a couple of chests were positioned around the camp.

A lone figure sitting on a crate noticed that he was awake and came over. It was his partner, his friend.

"Drink my comrade" stated Ewald handing him a canteen of water.

The Argonian drank deeply and wiped his mouth. "How long was I out?"

"A full day" replied the Dunmer unwrapping a small bag of food. He handed it to Je-Dal, who ate it happily.

"I had to drag all of these chests out myself" Ewald stated absently. If he was upset, he didn't sound it.

Je-Dal swallowed a chunk of rabbit. "I apologize."

The Dark Elf waved it away. "No matter. I actually wanted to so I could take inventory. We have almost twenty thousand septims. And that's only in gold. Not to mention the treasure."

The reptilian whistled. "We're filthy rich."

"Aye. We can finally buy that thing we always wanted."

"A painting of us and a collection of whores?"

"You were serious about that?"

"You weren't?"

"Ah, no."

The Argonian dropped his head. "Fine then. I guess we'll have to think of something else."

"Yeah. Speaking of which, how are we going to carry this stuff?"

They finally managed to come up with a plan Je-Dal would stay behind and guard the camp. Ewald would run to the nearest town and get some carriages. It would take at least three days and they argued before it was settled

"You're sure" inquired the Dark Elf for the hundredth time. "I don't feel good leaving ya."

"I'm fine my Dunmer ally" replied the Argonian. "I have plenty of food and water, and I can still stand."

"Still" muttered Ewald. He hated leaving his partner behind after he had suffered such a severe faint.

"Ewald, I am fine" assured Je-Dal. "the time you spend arguing could be used to get to Ivarstead. Now go!"

The elf nodded. "I will return. Don't wander off."

The reptilian gestured to the treasure around him. "Why would I leave?"

It took four days for Ewald to return. During that time Je-Dal had gotten so bored he was reduced to sharpening his arrows. All two hundred and seventy.

When he saw the carriages approaching him with an ecstatic Dunmer on the first car, he nearly broke into tears.

"Where were you?" he shouted over the distance.

"Delays" replied Ewald. "Ivarstead had no carriages, so I had to wait for horses from Riften. Then we met a troll and a feisty Imperial camp."

"Whatever! Just get those men to loading. I need to check something."

* * *

Je-Dal walked down the bridges to the bottom of the cave looking at the interior. He had been exploring the entire thing for any additional loot. It was still an amazing sight regardless.

He went over to the stone structure and saw all the symbols. By now he knew what it would do before he got close.

"Krien" he whispered reading the word. He sighed as he felt the word burn in his memory.

"Dragonborn eh?" he spoke to himself. "I can get used to that."

By the time he got back, Ewald had finished packing the carts. The elf turned and said, "What was there?"

"A word" replied the reptilian

"A word?"

"For the Thu'um."

"Ah!" exclaimed Ewald. "Of course. Anything else?"

"You forgot this" stated Je-Dal throwing him the Dwarven shield.

Ewald whistled holding the shield. "Nice. So nice I won't keep it."

Je-Dal chuckled and went over to the carts. The ever faithful hired help was finished loading up and seated in the carriages.

'This one is ours" said Ewald climbing up into the first carriage. The Argonian did the same and the elf ordered, "Come on lads! Treasure doesn't move itself!"

After about an hour, they had been stopped at a large Imperial camp.

"I'll do the talking" advised Ewald. "Just stay silent."

An Imperial came up and looked at the cart. "Who are you?"

The Dark Elf gave a smile. "We are traders, and come to visit with the Reach."

Because the treasure was hidden inside bags and chests, it looked nothing like the real loot inside.

The guard looked at the elf slyly. He wasn't sure if he could agree with the Dunmer or not.

"Maybe. I should check" he stated walking to the side.

"Maybe I should give you this emerald" replied Ewald pulling out the green gem, "And we continue on our way."

The guard was intrigued. An emerald was worth at least four hundred and he could sell it for five.

"Deal."

Ewald tossed him the flawless gemstone and the guard caught it.

"Carry on" the guard gestured to his fellows.

They complied and the carriages went right on by.

"Nice work" commented Je-Dal.

"The gifts of a silver tongue and a golden smile" responded Ewald.

* * *

They reached Ivarstead and the occupants looked in wonder. They had never seen anyone carrying that much gold.

They had laid down flower petals on the road and strung banners on the houses. They read: Welcome Dragon Slayers!

"I see you did not take the stealth role here" muttered Je-Dal.

"Why bother?" asked Ewald. "We should be celebrities. It suits us."

The occupants were cheering as the carts drive down the road. Ewald caught a flying rose and held it between his teeth. This raised howls of approval from the crowd.

They stopped in the middle of the town and were quickly swarmed by cheering people. The people knew the two in the first cart were the true dragon killers.

"This is what we really are" stated the Dark Elf looking over the crowds.

After about three hours, they had been taken to the inn and nearly drowned in mead. Many had personally assured them no stealing would result from their horde. They respected the work they had put into the loot.

"There we were, venturing into the cave" stated Ewald to the anxious crowd. "A clever Nord trap nearly took my head off, but the ever brilliant and quick Je-Dal managed to help me out."

Je-Dal smiled. So far his friend has told the story three times to three different crowds. This would be his fourth.

"We approached the dragon, with is long wings and terrible teeth" he said swinging the tankard. "Je-Dal brought up his mighty bow and fired a shot. It nailed the beast and came after him. I swooped in and engulfed it with fire from my pores. It grew weaker and I plunged my axe into its head. It fell dead, me and Je-Dal covered in blood."

The crowd cheered. So far Ewald had not lied terribly about their victory, but there was some exaggeration as all good stories are exaggerated.

"Thank you, thank you" the elf said trying to calm them down. "I retire for the night."

He went into the rented room they were sharing and plopped down on his bed.

"You lied ten times" stated Je-Dal reading a small book.

"Really? On what?"

"First, there was no rest of Frostbite spiders. Or trolls, or atronachs, or Draugrs, or bears, and especially not a giant."

Ewald laughed. "Yeah, you're probably right. But regardless it was just as fun."

Je-Dal lay back on the bed. "Lying isn't a crime, but it doesn't win you friends."

The Dunmer held up a large pile of letters. "Explain that to these lovely ladies."

The Argonian smirked. "You elves. Your charisma is your undoing."

"And our salvation."

Je-Dal put away the book. "Tomorrow we head for Riften. I recommend you get some sleep."

"Doubtful. One of these ladies is definitely a nine on my scale of ten."

**Yes, even elves need something to do. Don't blame the mer.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Now I do have a question for you readers. I've been thinking on making a website to post my artwork (New School primarily) and also some supportive details into my stories. It's a future idea I hope to use when I publish my original work. Just give a reply in the reviews. (P.S. It won't cost me a dime since I know ways around it.)**

Je-Dal rolled his eyes for the twentieth time that morning. Why must he be forced to comply with Ewald's foolishness?

The elf was still talking to a particular feisty hunter he had met the night before.

"And you're sure you'll return?" she asked for the hundredth time that morning.

Ewald gave a gracious smile. "Of course baby. I have absolutely no intentions of abandoning one of the most interesting, smart, and may I say attractive elf in all of Tamriel."

She smiled. "Go on you lier."

The Dunmer gave a bow. "Goodbye my love. Parting is such sweet sorrow."

He jumped in the carriage and noticed his partner's sour look. "What?"

"We were supposed to leave at 8."

"And?"

"It's almost noon."

Ewald laughed. "So she's a little talkative? I like her."

"Only because you haven't had to meet her parents."

The Dark Elf shrugged. "True to the end I guess."

It took them nearly three days to get to Riften. They were making slow progress according to Je-Dal, and it bugged him.

"Why the hell are we moving so slow?!" he finally exclaimed midway through the second day.

Ewald glanced at him. "Because we have hundreds of pounds of treasure being lugged by horses. Not to mention the fact that hired help tire quickly."

"Amazing how little our money can motivate them" muttered the Argonian.

When they got to Riften, they were stopped by a guard. He looked at the group and said, "Listen traders, you're going to have to pay the visitor's tax."

"Tax?" asked Ewald. He never remembered a tax.

"Yeah, for visiting the city. Now start paying or start walking."

The Dark Elf stood. "Wanna fight?"

The guard smiled. He could use some exercise. "Gladly."

Ewald jumped down and raised his fists.

"We don't have for this Ewald. We have plenty of gold" objected Je-Dal.

"Stay out of this man. I got this in the bag."

The guard charged without warning, arms raised to fight. Ewald crouched down and waited for the bull/guard.

The guard reached him and Ewald grabbed his belt. He then grasped his collar and flipped him head over heels.

The guard landed on his ass, dazed and sore. This raised howls of laughter from his comrades. The guard got red in the face and quickly got up.

"You little elf. I'm gonna break your freaking…"

Ewald didn't let him finish. He simply clapped both of his hands on the guard's temples. Unconsciousness was unavoidable.

Ewald looked at the other guards. "Anyone else?"

They entered the city without major incident. Couriers were carrying their treasure and gold. This left to many residents taking notice of them.

"Tell the boys to be careful" advised Ewald. "The Thieves Guild is still at work here."

Je-Dal nodded. He was a thief in a past life after all.

"We're going to need a lot of buyers" stated the Argonian.

"Yeah, but bartering is an even more versatile form of selling. Come on. Money doesn't line pockets by itself."

By mid-afternoon, they were walking on air. They were carriers of thirty thousand septims and were ready to leave.

"Look at this beautiful armor" said Ewald checking out his new gear. It was a set of Elven armor made of the finest malachite and moonstone. He had taken off the helm and was walking with his new set of glass swords on his back.

"It's nice" admitted Je-Dal. "But I prefer mine."

The Argonian was draped in a set of black leather designed for stealth. It was that color because it had been dyed in troll blood.

"Definitely intimidating" agreed Ewald. "An elf in native armor is one thing, but an Argonian with the clothes of night? Hell that could be a song."

"A song I am sure Sven could produce" stated Je-Dal.

"No doubt. That Nord has a sense of music in his hand."

The reptilian held up a bag of coins. "We still have so much money. What should we buy?"

"A house?"

"Why?"

"To store the cool stuff we find."

Je-Dal thought about it. "Maybe in Whiterun?"

Ewald nodded. "A good central location. And I can convince my sweetheart to come there!"

The Argonian rolled his eyes. "You and that woman are just plain troublesome."

**Ah, a woman. One little addition that will influence Ewald for the rest of his life.**


	8. Chapter 8

**So I would like to clarify I really don't have any idea where this is going. I'm just putting pen to paper and writing away. This will probably outlast my other story in the Skyrim universe, but you never know. **

"I would like to clarify something!" yelled Ewald sprinting alongside his partner.

Je-Dal looked at him. "What?!"

"We are not retreating! We are simply advancing in a different direction!"

The Argonian rolled his eyes and kept running.

Behind them lay the reason they were dashing through the snow. It was a massive frost giant who was very pissed with them. Apparently it was territorial of its little cave in the mountain.

"This is why we should learn to speak giant!" stated the Night Elf. "We could convince him this was all a big misunderstanding!"

"Well I know some giant!"

"Then speak it!"

Je-Dal turned his head and yelled a series of unintelligible words. At this the giant almost doubled his pace.

"What the hell did you say to him?"

"I think I told him I slept with his mother."

"You reptilian idiot!"

"You elven idiot!"

"And I just got married. Fuck me!"

Nearly a month had passed since they moved to Whiterun. After instructing the people there to build them a suitable house, they waited. And waited. And waited.

After about two weeks, the house was ready. It had a large trophy room, a practice room, and an alchemy laboratory. Not to mention room for all three of the people now living there.

As it turned out, Ewald's wife was actually quite tender. But in more of a motherly way than anything else. She repeatedly told him that without her, he would be nothing.

"This is not how I pictured dying!" exclaimed Ewald jumping over a fallen log. "I always thought I'd die after drinking enough mead to drown me, or perhaps falling into the ocean with explosions behind me and Sven narrating it."

"You thought pretty hard about that."

"Eh, mostly took me one night to think up."

They were somewhere deep in the upper reaches of Skyrim, almost a solid mile from Dawnstar. They had heard of some kind of Daedric shrine out here that may or may not have valuables. Since the word "may" was in there, they went.

Je-Dal turned and fired a heavy glass arrow in the giant. It shrugged it off like it was nothing and kept moving.

"We need something to stop it!"

Ewald pulled out a small pouch. "Wait! I got an idea!"

He pulled out five small objects, all the same size. They were crossbow bolts.

"I don't have a crossbow" said Je-Dal.

"You don't need one."

The elf wound the bolts together with a piece of string and pulled it taut. He activated a flame spell in his other hand lit the string.

"Run" he advised tossing it behind him.

The bound of bolts ricocheted off the ground and blew up. Instantly an explosion of pure fire burst from them and enveloped the giant. It writhed in agony and tried to scrape off the flaming embers.

"Take that you son of a bitch!" yelled the Dunmer. "Taste fiery Dwarven ingenuity! Wielded by an elven badass!"

Je-Dal noted the dead giant, then smacked his partner upside the head.

"What the hell was that for?"

"I told you to wait until I laid the trap! But no, the elven badass had to see if he could take on a giant!"

"He looked smaller from a distance!"

"Everything looks smaller at a distance!"

"Except a shadow" stated a voice not one of theirs.

They turned and saw someone was standing with them. This someone wore a long red robe and had a shaved head. He looked very odd against the white snow.

"Ah, who are you?" asked Ewald.

"Apologies. I am Silus Vesuius. I am a…well it really doesn't matter. I just saw you fighting that giant and I was wondering how you would die. But you surprised me and killed the giant. Now I am wondering if you gentlemen could help me."

Je-Dal calmly rubbed his bow. "How so?"

"I need an escort. Out here there're a lot of things that really don't like humans. I can pay you at least two hundred. Each. And that's for the company alone."

Ewald shrugged. "Why not? Which direction are you heading?'

Silus pointed to towards the south and began walking. "Now remember, no comments on the job. This is completely on me, so don't ask questions."

"No need" stated the Argonian. "We never ask questions."

Almost an hour later, they were still walking. Ewald was getting rather tired of this.

"How far are we?" complained the Dunmer.

"Not far my good man" stated Silus. "Don't worry. I shall pay you for this inconvenience."

Je-Dal grunted. He could feel something was up with this man, but he couldn't place it. He looked at his partner and pointed at his eye. Their symbol for "Look out".

The elf nodded and grasped one of his swords. The one he called Geiromar, which loosely translated to "Thunder". It had a very unique enchantment that enabled it to explode upon impact with a person. Its counterpart, Geiromir, meant "Lightning" and could cut through flesh and bone like paper.

They reached his destination, which astonished both of the hired escorts. It was a massive mountain located near the Lord Stone.

Silus sighed. "We are here."

He began walking up the side of the mountain, which they noted had stairs.

Je-Dal grabbed his partner by the lapels and began whispering into his ear.

"This guy is up to something. No one puts fucking stairs in the middle of the tundra. There's something majorly screwed up going on. Don't let go of your sword."

"I've never let it go" answered the Dark Elf.

They began following the man, their weapons ready. They were definitely ready for any tricks that might be pulled.

They reached the top of the stairs and realized they were now standing on a natural platform. In the middle of this platform was a table of some sort made of stone. In front of this was a door that led into the mountain. It looked very odd in the middle of the tundra.

Silus walked over to the table and laid down a bundle of cloth. He unraveled it and pulled out several things. There was a bundle of metal shards, a small gemstone, some sort of scabbard, and a long handle. It had a general white and black color scheme about it and looked dangerous.

Just then Je-Dal felt a familiar pulse in his head. He grunted and grasped at his noggin. Again?

The robed man threw the cloth away and stood behind the table. He lifted his arms and began to chant something.

"Lord Dagon, I bring before you the shards of your dagger. It had been broken for far too long my lord. Show us how mighty and great you are and introduce chaos to Tamriel once more."

"Wait a minute, Dagon? As in Mehrunes Dagon?!" yelled Ewald. "What the hell are you thinking?"

"Silence!" thundered Silus. "This is a very precise ceremony."

Je-Dal's skull practically shrunk and he winced.

"_Silus is mistaken. He does not have the handle. But you have it. Make your choice."_

The Argonian looked at him. "You don't have the right pieces."

The priest glared at him. "How? I have all the shards, the pommel stone, the hilt, and the scabbard. ALL of it is here!"

"No it isn't" stated the reptilian. He pulled out the handle he had saved. "This is the handle."

Silus's eyes widened. "How could I be so foolish? That is truly the handle."

He looked at Je-Dal. "I will offer you a thousand gold for it. Right now."

The Argonian grasped it firmly. "No."

Silus took a step forward. "Two thousand."

"No."

The priest's eyes narrowed. "What do you want for it?"

"You aren't getting it."

"Well I think we can negotiate this" advised Ewald.

"No, we can't" stated Silus. "Your friend has made that obvious."

He cracked his neck. "Well, I think I'll have to…"

Before he could talk, Je-Dal leapt. He landed on the priest and tackled him to the ground.

The Argonian raised his fist and smashed it into Silus's jaw. He did so again and again until blood poured from the priest's nose.

Silus raised a dagger and slashed at his face. Je-Dal grabbed the dagger and wrestled it from his grip.

He roared and plunged it into the priest. It burst the carotid artery and spewed blood over both of them. Je-Dal kept stabbing him, even when he had stopped bleeding and his neck was practically meat.

Ewald grabbed him and threw him off Silus's corpse. He smacked his partner a couple times to get him to concentrate.

"Calm the fuck down" commanded the Dunmer. "What the fuck was that?"

"I…I don't know" replied the Argonian. "I…I just went…went…"

"Fucking crazy" finished Ewald. "Let's get the hell away from here."

"But…the dagger!"

"Goddamn it man can't you see? Dagon is in your head! Drop that handle and let's go!"

Je-Dal stood uneasily, but stood nonetheless. He looked at Silus, who was already dead.

"Come on man, let's go!"

The Argonian nodded and turned.

Then put the handle on the table.

"Damn it!" shouted Ewald. He ran to snatch it, but Je-Dal whipped out his arm and knocked him unconscious.

The chunks of the dagger rose from the table and began assembling themselves in the air. He could hear the metal weld together and click into place.

When it was done, the dagger flew at Je-Dal. It pressed itself into his hand, which he noted, was burning hot. He screamed as unholy fire coursed through his veins

"_Good work mortal. I give you my Razor" _was the last words he heard before he collapsed.

**So Je-Dal goes crazy. How appropriate. He is dealing with Mehrunes Dagon after all.**


	9. Chapter 9

**So who's excited for Christmas eh? I sure as hell am. I got a peak at one of my stuff. Badass hunting jacket with a hood. I look like Conner Fenway in the 21st century. Not even lying.**

Je-Dal awoke for unconsciousness for the fourteenth time in his life. Seven times it was a result of drinking too much, four times during a fight, once with falling off a building, and then these two incidents with Mehrunes Dagon. Those two weren't his least favorite due to the sensation falling off a building gave.

He looked up and saw only clouds. He felt warmth radiating onto his feet, so he assumed his partner had made camp.

He sat up and saw Ewald tending a small fire. He had his cloak wrapped tight around him and had several bits of snow in his hair.

The elf noticed he was awake, but kept working anyway.

Je-Dal knew he deserved the cold reception due to his actions. He grabbed a canteen and drank a small bit of water.

"I'm sorry" he stated swallowing the water.

"It ain't your fault" stated the Dunmer. "Dagon is extremely powerful in his influences. I am surprised you are still alive."

"He is alive because I chose him to be" stated a voice near the fire.

They turned and saw someone was now seated next to the campfire. He wore a set of plate armor that was of Daedric design and had two large blades on his back. His face was deathly pale and had a shine to it. His eyes were black and his hair shone fiery orange.

"Who the hell are you?" asked Ewald.

The man smiled. "I am Mehrunes Dagon, Daedric Lord of Destruction."

"That's impossible" said Je-Dal. "A Daedric Lord can't appear in Tamriel. There's simply too much power to be placed into the realm."

"That is where you are wrong reptilian. Daedra are able to appear in Tamriel by possessing a body of some sort. The easiest are existing human forms. But this requires contracts and blood rituals, all of which are too complicated for me. But I can construct a body using metal. A lot more complicated, but convenient."

"What if you died?"

Dagon laughed. "I cannot die mortal. Dying is something my race cannot due. But this body can die. Then I'll have to spend more time making another body while in Oblivion."

"Why are you here?"

The Daedric Lord looked over at the Argonian. "I wanted to see how my newest champion is doing. I do apologize for the unpleasant mental trauma."

"Why did you choose me?"

"Why do I choose anyone? It's because you are special. You are Dragonborn. Something that has not happened in centuries. I cannot pass on this opportunity."

"What do I do as your champion?"

"Well, just do as you do. The more things that you take from their final resting places, the more things inevitably get awakened from this."

"Wait, what?!" declared Ewald.

The Daedra gave an innocent look. "Oh, you don't know? Well your actions are not exactly the smoothest. The dragon cave was the first step. There's more in store. I guarantee it."

"Well fuck" muttered Je-Dal. "I always knew we would be digging our hands into a conspiracy. I just didn't imagine it'd be now."

"Yes well, it's pretty bad. I mean 'level mountains' bad. I've done that before. Tons of fun."

"There's more" spoke Ewald.

Dagon looked at him sideways. "What do you mean?"

"There's more to being your champion then you let on. There isn't a Daedric Lord who just lets a mortal be. Those kind of Daedra don't exist."

The Lord of Destruction smiled. "You have a point. I need to be sure you are as powerful as you state."

"What do you mean?"

The Daedra pulled out a blade and began to sharpen it. It had a deathly aura to it and smelled like poison.

"This body is nowhere near my power in Oblivion, but it should suffice."

He turned to Je-Dal. "But first, a wake-up."

He pressed his palm into the reptilian's head and squeezed his fingers.

The Argonian gasped as Dagon's magicka radiated into his body. It loosened his muscles and electrified all of his nerves. His eyes sharpened and his breath became steady.

Then the Daedra tossed him several meters away.

Ewald stood suddenly, both swords drawn. Dagon calmly raised his hand and from the ground raised several pillars. They encircled the Dunmer and closed to a point above his head.

"I want to see you fight Dragonborn!" enticed the Daedra. "Show me you can truly be my champion!"

Je-Dal pulled out his bow and fired a shot. Dagon dodged it and began to run at him.

The Argonian notched another and nailed the Daedra in the shoulder. The Lord stopped and pulled out the arrow with a deep _schlik._

"Ugh. How disgustingly this body bleeds" noted Dagon.

Then Je-Dal shot him in the face.

The Lord of Destruction collapsed to his knees, the projectile embedded in the area right where his eye was supposed to be. He grabbed it and calmly pulled it out. His eye was gone, and blood covered his face, but he looked unfazed.

"Come on Dragonborn. Try harder" he taunted. He spun one of his blades and threw it in a deadly arc.

Je-Dal ducked under it, but still felt something tear into his left leg. He screamed in agony and saw that it had left a burn instead of a cut.

"Oh, so it chooses to burn now? How convenient."

He flicked his wrist and the blade returned to him. He smiled at the Argonian. "You'll have to work hard to defeat me mortal. I don't fight fair."

Je-Dal sighed and pulled out a book. It had no markings on it; it just looked like a leather-bound book.

Dagon found this hilarious. "You're going to tell me a story eh? Go on, bore me to death."

The Argonian turned to a page and read carefully. Then he opened his mouth.

"FUS!"

A whirlwind escaped his lips, encircling around him and the Daedric Lord. It began to pick up the snow around it, reducing visibility drastically. Dagon actually felt himself get cold from this, despite the intense literal fire in his heart.

"RO!"

The wind snatched the breath from him and snapped his head to the side. The blades flew from his grasp, spinning in deadly circles in the blizzard.

"DAH!"

It felt like the entire ground moved as one. Dagon flew into the air and began circulating the Dragonborn. He felt one of his blades rake across his chest, leaving a deep burn across it.

Then he had left the whirlwind and was falling.

Straight off the nearby cliff.

Je-Dal collapsed as soon as he finished the word, his breath coming hard. His teeth were covered in blood and his eyes were bloodshot. He had only tried breathing a Shout once before and that was for only a few seconds.

About two weeks ago, he stumbled upon a book that stated the abilities of a Dragonborn. Of course the absorption of Dragon souls were included and the Thu'um, but one thing caught him off guard. It was apparently possible to literally breath Words of Power, extending the time they're cast and the effect. Similar to a dragon's Thu'um, it required a long drag on the words to use. However, it also had penalties. Since Dragon words are not native to humans, they had traumatic effects to a body system. The book described symptoms as small as headaches to as devastating as seizures. Je-Dal had discovered his usually involved internal bleeding and bruising on his neck.

The Argonian went to his partner, who was still in a cage. He pulled out a dagger and began to saw through the bars. Then he heard clapping.

"Nice job Dragonborn. Very good job."

His eyes widened. It couldn't be.

He turned, and saw that Mehrunes Dagon was standing at the edge of the cliff, his mouth in a fierce grin. His armor was far more torn and dented, but he looked fine.

"A good old fall of that cliff would've taken this body, but thankfully there was this to break it."

He held up one of his blades. It was covered in his blood, but also in chunks of stone.

"Bloody thing hit me in the sternum on the way down. I decided to use it to my advantage."

He placed it back in his scabbard. "But now, I'm kinda pissed. So I'm gonna kill you, so there."

Then something smashed into his face that sent him into the ground.

Someone walked past Je-Dal, someone short. He wore a white cloak with a black mask over his face. On his back were a long pair of javelins and a collection of throwing knives. He was currently holding what looked like a boomerang sharpened to a fine edge in one hand and a round shield.

"Who are you?" asked the Argonian.

"No one" answered the stranger. "Just someone with something to settled with Mehrunes Dagon."

He flicked his wrist and let the boomerang fly. It sailed to Ewald's cage and sliced straight through the bars, freeing the Dark Elf.

He caught it on its return voyage and put it in a small scabbard. "Don't interrupt my fight. Just leave."

"But…"

"No buts!" thundered the man. "I must do this alone."

Ewald walked over to Je-Dal. "Let's go. This guy obviously knows what he's doing."

Just then Dagon rose from the ground and tossed his blades. The stranger pulled out his javelins and returned fire.

The spears flew perfectly into the holes of the blades and deflected them in different directions. They both landed in chunks of ice, rendering them unusable.

"No punches spared my former master. Shall we continue?'

The Daedric Lord laughed. "You again! Ha! You are a pathetic waste of cum! Nothing compared to your brother!"

"Not true" stated the stranger pulling out a short sword. "He's too misguided by his madness to be a threat. But I am not. So get ready Dagon!"

The Lord of Destruction raised his fists. "I always wanted a coward-skin wallet."

**Before I get lore-literate assholes preaching on how Daedra can't die, let me explain. These forms I am adding are PHYSICAL bodies that CAN DIE. Think of the vessel Barbas used in the quest A Daedra's Best Friend and Boethiah in Boethiah's Calling. Those are the bodies I am talking about, not their natural forms. I hate to rant and explain my stuff, but since this is a sensitive ass area in the Elder Scrolls lore, I need to make sure people get my message.**


	10. Chapter 10

**AAAAAAAH! I'm dying! Nope, still good. Slightly concerned that people will flip the fuck out today (12/21/12), but due to how much the rumors spread, the freaking government is getting involved. No BS. I suspect I will have a police squad when I show up to take one of my classes. But that's irrelevant. What is relevant is this badass new chapter!**

The stranger smashed his fist into Dagon's head, breaking his jaw in one punch.

The Daedra leaped back and snapped it back into place. "Impressive strength. But nothing to mine!"

He plunged his hands into ice and gripped something underneath. He then braced his shoulders and pulled.

From the ground rose a large pillar of stone, a very large pillar. It was of black onyx and completely straight. He was currently gripping it by the handles that were on the top, which were Daedric in design.

He threw up his arms and the pillar rose from the ground. It was twenty feet in length and nearly two feet wide.

"Take this!" he yelled throwing it at the ground.

It smashed into the ice and sent up large chunks of the frozen liquid. The stranger leaped back and the pillar literally grew, chasing after him against the ground.

The stranger stopped and lifted his fist.

The pillar hit him and shattered into infinitesimal pieces against his strength. He flicked his arm and the pillar changed directions away from him, smashing into a nearby rock.

"Is that it Dagon? Is that all of the tricks you can conjure against me?"

"No" answered the Daedric Lord. "You should know, you witnessed my battle with your brother."

"If he was strong enough to defeat you, then I can easily kill you."

Dagon laughed. "Stronger? YOU summoned me there! You used me because you couldn't defeat him! That already shows you where everyone is on the pecking order."

"Wrong" stated the stranger pulling out his sword. It expanded to a full broadsword, nearly two meters in length, and he raised it high. "I summoned you due to my ill-preparedness. But now, I have this planned to the tiniest detail. So it's you who is the fool."

The Daedra stopped smiling. "Fine then. Let's see how good your plan is."

He lifted his arms and from his forearms grew black spikes. They pointed towards the first and became a sort of gauntlet over his arm. One spike on each arm grew so large that it extended a solid meter from his hand.

"Let's play."

He sprinted forward and swung his arms in a wild dance. The stranger lifted his sword and blocked the furious strikes, sparking up with each contact. He raised his leg and smashed Dagon right in the ribcage.

The Daedra flew backwards and rolled several times in the snow. He shook off the daze and lifted his head.

Just in time to watch the stranger smash his fist into his chest. The ice cracked in a crater five meters in diameter around them, lowering the ground significantly. Needless to say, some of the metal ribs inside Dagon shattered.

The Lord of Destruction raised his spiked hand and attempted to impale the stranger. He saw this coming and leaped backwards.

Dagon got up, creaking the metal inside of him. "Ugh. That hurt."

He looked up at him. "You have surprised me. Breaking ebony is one thing, but enchanted ebony? I have obviously underestimated you."

"You did."

"Well I really should stop making that mistake. That's the main reason your brother beat me."

"No. That's not why. He beat you because his skill was higher."

Dagon laughed. "You scorn his name and now you defend him? Who's side are you on? Do you remember what he did?"

"Not a day goes by where I don't remember his sins. But I know his power. No one else can do what he does. But I know I'm just as strong as him. Which means I can kill you."

The Daedric Lord grasped a bent rib and pulled it straight. "I guess I'll need to try something else."

He put his hand behind his head and grasped something. But since there was nothing visible on his back, no one could tell what he was grasping.

"What the hell is he doing?" whispered Ewald. They had decided to retreat back and see how bad this went. If the stranger won, great. If Dagon won, well, they were really good at running.

"I don't know" replied Je-Dal.

Dagon began to pull something upwards and put another hand on it. Then he pulled it free.

A long metal spine freed itself from his body and flared out to exaggerate the vertebrae. Then it stopped.

The Daedric Lord crouched down and pulled the spine downward, bring his entire body with it.

At the end was a ribcage, a large metal one. It burst outward and began to form into a mace style weapon.

Dagon stood, his metal bone mace ready.

"This technique is very hard to use with this body" he stated letting the weapon continue growing. "I have to regrow my ribs after pulling out these ones and keep a proper spinal structure. But it does have benefits."

The stranger stabbed his sword into the earth and reached to his scabbards of throwing knives. He put one in each of his finger gaps and looked at Dagon.

"Let's see how quick you are."

He then threw them, letting them spiral outwards in an arc fashion.

Dagon spun and deflected the first two aimed at his head. With this followed the ones at the neck, chest, and knee level.

The stranger snarled. "I'm not done yet!"

He manipulated his fingers and the blades came back on the opposite trajectories they had come from. At this Dagon noticed that they were tied to strings which were attached to the stranger's hands.

The blades embedded into the ground and pulled the strings taut. The stranger pressed his palms together and roared as hard as he could.

The cloudy sky overhead rumbled with thunder and it began to snow ferociously. Then a solid bolt of lightning flew at Dagon.

It blasted straight through the Daedric Lord and boiled away the metal of his body. He jerked with the pure energy and vomited the liquid metal from his frame. Then he crumbled into a pool of ebony.

The stranger sighed and flicked his wrists. The knives returned to his hands and he sheathed them.

"I don't understand. How was he so weak?"

"This is why" stated Je-Dal lifting the Razor.

The stranger turned to him. "He reconstructed it? I broke it up for that same reason. Damn it. But it did waste a good chunk of his energy in repairing it."

"Who the hell are you? You apparently worked for Dagon, and have a brother who was able to defeat him? Who are you?"

"My name is nothing that I need. Names are made to just label us and make us someone we are not. I still have not chosen a name for myself."

"Dude, you are so deep I can't even see you anymore."

The stranger scoffed. "Fuck you man. I saved your ass and this is how you thank me? Whatever."

Then he walked off into the blizzard.

"Well what a douche" muttered Ewald.

"Yeah."

**Message to the Editor: That is NOT who you think it is.**


	11. Chapter 11

**So yeah, those pictures are taking forever. But I can guarantee they will be finished before this story is done. So yeah.**

"How did you get wounded here!?" yelled Darai examining her husband's wounds.

He gave a small smile. "Cause I knew you'd have to take off my shirt to treat it."

She punched him in an unwounded section of his back. "You perv."

After returning from their wasted trip to Dawnstar, they had been doing their typical thing. Licking their wounds, or in Ewald's case, having his wife lick his wounds.

"I think you need to be more careful" she stated winding the bandages tighter. "Your first aid skills are horrible."

"Hey, I'm still here aren't I?"

"But you won't be if you keep trying to kill yourself out here!"

"Yes ma'am."

Je-Dal smiled. He loved to see these two argue. It gave him happiness to not be tied down to one woman. Being an Argonian, he had limited options anyway.

"So what did you get on this voyage?" she asked cutting the bandage.

The Argonian lifted his Razor. "A nice dagger."

Darai stated into it. "Whoa. That's…amazing."

He sheathed it quickly. "Don't stare into it. I don't want to kill you."

She laughed, but Ewald gave her a serious glance. "He's not lying. That's how he got the dagger."

She turned to the reptilian. "You killed a man over a dagger?"

"Yes. And he tried to kill me."

"Before or after you attacked?"

"After."

"Well no wonder why! I hope that thing's as deadly as it is mesmerizing!"

A loud noise echoed throughout the house and Ewald drew one of his swords. "What the hell is that?"

Je-Dal stood. "Battle horn. Someone is invading Whiterun."

The Dunmer threw on a tunic and grabbed his swords. "If it's the Stormcloaks, I am going to be pissed off."

They walked out of their home and looked over the wall. Outside were several catapults lodging stones over the wall. And hanging proudly from them was the bear symbol of Ulfric's army.

"Well shit" muttered Ewald. "I was actually having a nice morning."

"We can't fight them" stated Je-Dal.

"Why not? Those assholes have suppressed my people for too damn long."

"They don't come for a quarrel with us. If we stand down we won't be overrun."

The elf snarled. "Damn it. You're right of course, but damn."

Suddenly something wearing leather breezed right past them. It was obviously a Dunmer judging by the skin tone, but only that was prominent. The armor was very light brown and covered his face in a hood. He carried a large satchel on his back that was bulging slightly around the edges.

"Hm, so the Thieves' Guild is back in business" said Ewald.

"Apparently so."

Closely following the thief was a Companion, his armor half-on. He was running with two large axes at his back and a completely red-face.

"Get your ass back here you damned elf thief!" yelled the warrior as fast as he could.

"I think he could've left out the elf part" murmured Ewald.

"Agreed."

The thief reached the wall and leaped onto it. Using his hands and boots he managed to climb all the way to the top and over it.

The Companion stopped and sighed. "Damn it."

Suddenly another member of his organization appeared. "Odei, come on! We must defend Jorrvaskr! This conflict is between the Legion and the Stormcloaks, not us!"

"Roger that Vilkas" replied the Nord. He ran off with him, cursing the runaway thief.

"They have a point" stated Je-Dal. "I think I know how we can convince those damn rogues to leave us be."

"How?"

"Peace offering. Get the mead."

Ten minutes later, the Stormcloaks were inside the city. They didn't do pillaging, just making sure any guards were dead or restrained. Many were actually kinda chill when they settled.

"So I'm just saying, why the hell would anyone just leave a map lying around a bar?" asked Ewald in a circle of Stormcloaks.

"Uh, bad luck?" answered one of them.

"Hell no! A set up that's why! Me and Je-Dal walked straight into that damn thing! Ten bandits, all of them with plate armor. Thankfully, we can kick ass with the best of them. Ain't that right?"

The Argonian nodded.

"Well you're either the biggest bull-shitters I know or you are as badass as you claim" stated one of the soldiers. There were two odd things about this one. First of all, she was a female, and a Redguard. She wore a simple set of iron armor with a horned helm that was in her lap. She drank and spat with the rest of them and had the charisma of Darai.

"Well I can say without a shadow of a doubt that we are that badass" replied the elf swinging his bottle.

"Then you are the biggest bull shitters I know."

He scoffed. "Whatever."

Someone joined them, someone obviously higher up. He wore the Stormcloak uniform but with a wolf skull over his head. The others around the circle stood straighter when he sat.

"Relax boys. I ain't coming here as a general. I came here for a drink. And seeing as that everyone else is hiding, you two seem to be the only ones serving anything."

"No point in hiding" stated Je-Dal. "Black-Brier or Honningbrew?"

"Black-Brier."

The Argonian handed him a bottle, which he took happily.

"I've been thinking, why don't you two join?" asked the Redguard looking at the adventurers. "You both have seen battle. And you're obviously the bravest souls in this town."

"While I can agree with you" stated the general, "I need to know if they really fight for Skyrim. So why do you fight?"

"Money" stated Je-Dal.

"Money" replied Ewald.

"There you go. We can't take him."

The women shrugged. "Oh well. I was hoping to have some diversity, but I guess not."

"I am not sure Ulfric would approve of us either" stated Je-Dal. "We are two of the inferior races after all."

"I must talk to him about that" muttered the general. "We can't rally all of Skyrim's sons and daughters if we discriminate against the races."

"Why does he discriminate anyway?" asked the Redguard.

"The battles he's fought. He's killed dozens of elves during the Great War and the Bretons of the Forsworn. Not to mention he has only fought alongside Nords in the past. I think he needs to learn the difference between tradition and ignorance. I believe that it doesn't matter what a man or woman looks like, as long as their heart is strong and their arm is, well, strong too."

The Redguard nodded. "If you had discriminated me, I'd be mega-pissed off."

"And we could've missed the opportunity to use you as a soldier. You do fight damn well Kamaria."

"Thank you sir."

The general stood. "Now, I need to deliver the message. Whiterun is now Stormcloak territory."

"Wait!" yelled Ewald. "I got a question."

"Depends. What the hell is it?"

"Are you going to illegalize alcohol?"

"No. Why?"

"Oh, awesome. Then you guys can stay."

The general laughed. "Finally, someone with some humor. Well I gotta go take a long ass journey home. So I better go now."

"Nice meeting you general."

"And the same to you."

**Well, no comments here. So yeah.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Now I am still not sure what the end result of this story is going to be, mainly because I have so many possibilities. But I will continue as best as I can.**

"So what exactly is here anyway?" asked Ewald keeping up with his partner.

"Supposedly a Dwarven ruin of some sort."

"Awesome. Been too long since we've scavenged in one of those."

After the battle of Whiterun (which did end with the Stormcloaks occupying it) they decided to go investigate a sight near the coastline of Solitude. They hadn't gotten a name, but they never needed one.

"I feel a little nervous though" stated Je-Dal fingering the Razor. "I smell something, something off."

"It's probably the ocean."

"No. This is different."

The Dark Elf stopped. His partner was usually very good at sniffing out ambushes. "What is it?"

The Argonian took a long sniff. "This smells like…death."

"Correct, reptile."

They turned and saw that someone was standing behind them. He wore an odd grey robe that flowed over him and carried a steel sword. He was a Nord, but the main unorthodox thing was his eyes. They were smaller than normal and glowed yellow.

"Vampire" muttered Ewald.

The Nord smiled, revealing his fangs. "All too correct."

Je-Dal released and swung the Razor in one motion and cut a slash clean into the Nord's cheek. He screamed in pain and took several steps backwards.

Just then several others leaped out of various crevices and surrounded the two. Ewald drew one of his swords, but just as quickly someone smashed his arm into his face. The Dunmer dropped like a stone.

Several strong arms wrapped around the Argonian and he tried to buck from them with no success.

The Nord stood. His face looked awful, the cut nearly splitting the entire left cheek. He glared at the reptilian and punched him in the face.

"That wasn't a smart move motherfucker" stated the Nord snarling. "I was just going to divide your blood amongst all of us, but now I think you deserve something more."

He pulled out his sword and smashed the hilt into Je-Dal's face. Before he blacked out, he heard the Nord say something that chilled him to the bone.

"Bring them to the cave."

* * *

Je-Dal woke up and felt the bonds on his arms. He tugged them. They didn't give way at all. He was in a kneeling position with his head bowed.

"There is no point struggling" stated the Nord from an unknown source. "Those are magic bonds of my own making. They won't break through force."

The Nord stepped in front of Je-Dal, smiling manically. "While I had originally wanted to just feast upon you, that would be selfish. So I decided to do something a bit more, well, pleasing to my master."

He snapped his fingers and around the room flared dozens of candles. This also illuminated the room they were on, which contained a dozen other vampires. At the end of the room was an altar, which was the vilest thing Je-Dal had ever seen. It was made of black metal and looked to be made of screaming demons. It was exactly twenty feet long and only a foot off the ground. In the center of it was a large hole that was full of what looked like blood.

"This is a shrine to our chief lord of all that is unholy. Molag Bal, Lord of Domination" stated the Nord. "In his name we sacrifice the weak and worthless."

He turned to the Argonian. "That includes you and your friend."

Je-Dal snarled and tried to break free again with no avail.

"Good. Keep struggling. It makes it more interesting."

He grabbed him and hauled him to his feet. "Let's see what color you bleed Argonian."

The Nord dragged him to the altar and Je-Dal felt something throb in his head. He knew who it was now.

"_So my champion is now presented before the shrine of Molag Bal to be sacrificed. Like a dog. Now tell me, what will you do now?" asked Mehrunes Dagon._

"_I do not know" replied Je-Dal mentally._

"_Rise my champion!" declared Dagon loudly. "You serve a lord of destruction and death! You yourself are a spirit of my power! I chose you because you could destroy on your own! Now go!"_

By then Je-Dal had arrived at the shrine. The Nord pulled out his sword and raised it to Je-Dal's neck. The other vampires were smiling proudly at this and licking their lips.

"Any last words reptile?" asked the Nord.

The Argonian glanced at him. Then he yelled three words.

"ZUN HAAL VIIK!"

The sword flew from the Nord's hand, catching him off guard. Je-Dal concentrated inside his head and felt Dagon pulse inside it.

"_Yes! Come on my champion! Show me your worth!"_

The reptilian roared in anger and felt something in his chest shift. Then he was enveloped in an explosion of magicka and felt the bonds disintegrate.

He spread his arms and roared in approval at his power. His eyes began to burn, but quickly settled to a small itch. He looked at his hands. They were still clawed, but now were covered in magicka.

He grabbed the Nord and looked him in the eyes. Then he ripped his arm off.

The Nord screamed in pain and collapsed. Je-Dal raised the arm and threw it at the nearest vampire. It collapsed under the bloody projectile and let the arm sink into its chest.

Je-Dal grabbed the nearby sword and swung it wildly at those around him. His swings cleaved flesh from bone and tore through sinew. Three were dead before they could draw weapons and five more died with only daggers out.

The reptilian turned and saw that the Nord was back in the game. He was still bleeding from his arm, but was wielding a sword nonetheless.

Je-Dal roared and grabbed him by the head. Gripping until he felt satisfied, he slammed the Nord's head into the altar.

Blood burst from the initial wound and the Nord coughed up a small patch. Je-Dal brought him back up and slammed him down again.

This shattered the skull and made blood pool beneath him. But he still felt the spark of life inside the Nord, so he raised and lowered him again.

This time brain matter burst from the edges of the skull and blood poured into the altar. Just to satisfy his bloodlust, Je-Dal ripped apart the other limbs and tossed them into the altar.

Feeling his anger subside, the reptilian turned to see that his partner was still bound. He walked over to him and cut through his bonds.

Ewald looked up at him with dazed eyes. "Dude, you're glowing."

"What?"

"You're freaking glowing man. And you got wings."

Je-Dal looked behind him. Sure enough, a pair of wings was sprouting from his back. They appeared to be made of solid gold and radiated a nice harsh aura. They were edged smoothly and were very simple in style.

"Cool" he muttered feeling the tips. It was actual gold too.

Just then the wings faded out of existence, disappearing completely in seconds.

"Well that kinda sucks."

He heard someone clapping and turned.

Standing before him was a figure he remembered well. His body was black metal and his flesh was energy.

"Impressive my champion" stated Mehrunes Dagon. "You killed ten vampires and desecrated their altar. I am proud of you."

He looked at him curiously. "Your abilities at Dragonborn keep getting more interesting. First Shouts, then breathing Shouts, now wings. Most curious."

"Do you have any information on this Lord Dagon?"

"No. But that is irrelevant. What is relevant is your reward."

Je-Dal looked at him curiously. "My reward?"

"Yes. Through this act of extraordinary violence you have proven your worth. So I must reward you with something."

The Daedric Lord lifted his hand and flicked his wrist.

Bursting from the ground a solid round stone rose. It was about three feet in diameter and completely unblemished.

Dagon lifted his fist and smashed it right on the top. It shattered in half and fell apart. In the center of it was a chest designed in the style of Daedra.

"Just a small prize my champion" he stated walking off. "Don't spend it all in one place."

Je-Dal gave a small bow. "Thank you Lord Dagon."

"So polite. But that is good mortal. It shows me that I can deal with you. Goodbye."

**I decided to allow Daedra a more physical presence in this. An ominous voice isn't so intimidating if you are simply reading it after all.**


	13. Chapter 13

**Happy New Year!**

**Now a fair warning: Things might get a little funky with these guys since they don't have a quest line to even base off of. Expect everything.**

"I am growing tired of this" stated Je-Dal glaring into a mirror.

Ewald looked up. "Tired of what?"

They were back at their house and were planning on their next adventure. Or at least Ewald was. Je-Dal had been in a bad mood since the incident with the vampires.

"It seems as if I am just a pawn in a game that I cannot see. I am Dragonborn, yes. But what does that mean? All I know is that I can Shout and sprout wings on occasions. But what does it mean to be Dragonborn? Are there even any others out there?"

"Probably. I mean, only one Dragonborn? Sounds kinda boring to me."

"This is serious Ewald."

"I know that. But what can we do Je-Dal? We can't just look up their names in a census. So we have to keep doing what we're doing."

Somebody knocked at the door and the Argonian rose to answer it. He opened the door and stared in confusion at the person in front of him.

The person was just above five feet and a lot shorter then Je-Dal. He wore a black robe that also covered his head with a hood. His face was covered in a white mask of simple design with only one eyehole.

"Who are you?" asked Je-Dal.

Instead of answering, the robed man took out a piece of paper and read off it. "Is your name Je-Dal?"

"Yes. Who do you know me?"

The person looked up at him and he saw that the one eye was ice blue. "My name is something that I cannot say. But I can say that I am Dragonborn."

"What? You are as well?"

The man glared at him. "Try not to alert the entire city. You must come with me at once. Alone."

"Why?"

'You seek answers. All Dragonborn do. I did for a while. But now I have the answers."

"Please tell me."

The man shook his head. "Come with me then. Leave your partner behind."

Je-Dal turned around. "Ewald, I'm going somewhere."

"Fine. It's about time you went somewhere anyway."

The Argonian reached to grab his kit, but the man stopped him. "We won't be long, believe me. You will not need your weapons."

Je-Dal paused, but decided to trust him. He then walked through the door and closed it behind him.

"Walk with me. Please."

* * *

They walked out of Whiterun and were walking towards the Honningbrew Meadery. The man spoke no words, not to Je-Dal or anyone.

"Why are you so silent?" eventually asked the Argonian.

"I prefer not to speak while around people" spoke the man.

"Can I at least know your name?"

"No. I cannot tell you that."

They went past the Meadery and continued onto the road to Riverwood. Then the man decided to speak.

"I must ask, how much do you know about the Dragonborn?"

Je-Dal thought about it. "Well I know that I can absorb the souls of dragons and use their Shouts. And supposedly I am supposed to defeat a dragon named Alduin."

The man nodded. "All of this is accurate. But I must tell you something. That destiny is not for one Dragonborn."

"What do you mean?"

"Alduin is the World-Eater, the Bane of Nirn. To defeat him is impossible. He is an assured prophecy. He WILL come to devour our world at the end times. But what we must do is prevent him from conquering it. He does not want to destroy this world. He wants to rule it, like he did before the Great Dragon War. But we Dragonborn must prevent this. So it will require multiple to defeat him and rid him from this realm. For a short time anyway."

"How do we defeat him?" asked Je-Dal.

The man sighed. "I do not know. I am still looking for an answer."

He stopped and grabbed the Argonian by the shoulders. For some reason, his touch was ice cold. "I need you to become more powerful as a Dragonborn. Learn the Shouts so that when the time comes, you can stand beside me and fight against Alduin."

"Will there be others besides us?"

"Of course. But some of them will have to be convinced with more creative methods. But that is my task. Now I feel the need to leave you with something."

The man pulled out a small ring and handed it to Je-Dal. "It is a ring developed by Tiber Septim himself. It will help your shouts become more powerful as a result. Good luck, and may Sithis be kind to your soul."

Then he disappeared into the shadows.

**For my Editor: That WAS Him.**

**To my Fans: I apologize that I am keeping you in the dark. But believe me, he doesn't know too much about Him anyway. I am still writing his stuff after all. But don't worry. Your patience is appreciated.**


	14. Chapter 14

**Now this is a sort-of one-shot I have wanted to do for a while. I was just waiting for the right time to unveil it. I think that's now. Oh, and I mean one-shot as in the sense that I can practically do anything with these guys and it'll be good.**

"Now what did this contact supposedly look like?" asked Ewald gulping down some mead.

"Well, he said that he'd be wearing something that nobody could miss."

"Well he already sounds like a weirdo."

Je-Da had spent the last couple of weeks trying to figure out the legend of the Dragonborn. So far, he had the same as when he started. The only thing he had to show was what that stranger gave to him. Since he had gotten incredibly bored reading books, they went out to do some treasure-hunting.

They were sitting in an inn in Markarth, awaiting a contact who supposedly knew something about a local treasure. Something that wasn't Nordic or Dwemer.

"I hope this isn't a waste of time" muttered Je-Dal. "I am not in the mood for wasting my time."

Someone walked into the inn, a very odd man. He was wearing an bright orange coat over a blue shirt. His hair was dyed green and his eyes were a deep red.

"That is probably him" guessed Ewald.

Sure enough, he walked over to them and sat down.

"Well it is good to see you two" stated the contact smoothly despite his appearance. "I wish to get right onto business."

"Your outfit obviously thinks otherwise" commented Ewald.

"I simply wear what feels comfortable. This is what felt right today."

Je-Dal shrugged. "Whatever. Where are we going and what can we expect?"

"Oh well, it's this curious ruin about a mile from here. It's in the direction of Rorikstead in case you were wondering. Now, I am not really sure what to suspect. So that is up to you fine gentlemen."

Ewald shrugged. "Not too bad. What kind of ruin is it?"

"I am not sure. It doesn't appear to be Nordic or Dwemer. It almost looks like an Imperial construction."

"In Skyrim?"

"That is why I thought it was so odd."

Je-Dal rubbed his hands together. "Odd can mean money. That is good."

The man nodded. "Now I must ask that you be careful. I have reason to be it is very dangerous."

"Well then, it's a good think I packed my swords."

* * *

They reached the ruin by mid-day that same day. It was very odd. Mainly since the exterior was a shed.

"OK, I was not expecting this" stated Ewald. "Are you sure we got the right directions?"

Je-Dal looked around. "Yep. This hand-drawn map on a napkin definitely helps."

The Dunmer shrugged. "Well I guess we can at least knock. See if we're anywhere close."

He walked up to the shed, examining its exterior. The blinds on the windows were drawn back and the wood looked fresh. Other than that, it looked rather ordinary.

He knocked and felt that the door was ajar. It swung open easily, but for some reason didn't send any light into the room.

Ewald gestured for his partner and walked deeper inside.

The room was bare, with absolutely nothing inside it. Strangely enough, the room didn't feel right. It was as if there was something else here.

He lit a match and tried to gaze into the darkness outside of the doorway's aura.

Je-Dal joined him and shut the door.

Suddenly, the world around them exploded into colors. They were both blinded and covered their eyes immediately.

Je-Dal recovered first. He drew his Razor and waved it around.

They were definitely inside a different room. This one was completely white. Even the ceiling and walls were white. The furniture was white. The massive statue of a six-footed centaur was white.

Wait, what the hell was that?

Je-Dal looked at the statue. Indeed, it was a centaur with six legs. It looked more like a spider then a horse though.

He noticed something at the foot of the statue, a small bag. He went over to it and picked it up.

"What the hell is that?" asked Ewald recovering from the light.

"A white bag."

"Figured. What's in it?"

The Argonian shifted through the bag and came across a small hand mirror. He picked it up. Except for the glass part, it too was white.

Je-Dal looked into it and saw a reflection not his own. It was their contact.

"Hello gentlemen. I see that you found the ruin."

"What the fuck is this shit?' inquired Ewald.

"This shit, my friend, is the ruins of course."

"These aren't ruins. This room was freshly painted obviously."

"Well, painted is a misconception. But irrelevant. Now, I think I told you something about treasure. That is correct. But I require one thing from you."

"What is it?"

"Paint this room a different color. Any color. Any combination. Violet, blue, polka-dots! Sorry, that one kinda came out."

"Where's the paint?" asked Je-Dal.

Suddenly two buckets appeared next to the statue. They were full of completely clear liquid and had no color.

Ewald picked one up. "These don't have color."

"Just tell it what to be you simpleton! Sorry, slip of the tongue."

The Dunmer shrugged. "Red" he spoke to the bucket.

The deepest shade of red emitted from the center of the liquid and spread to the farthest edges.

"Cool. Now, what about brushes?"

He heard a splashing noise and looked into the bucket. Floating above the red was a white paintbrush. It seemed to be unaffected by paint, but the bristles were definitely colored.

Ewald looked at his partner. "Well, might as well get started. Since I can't find a door."

Je-Dal picked up a bucket and grabbed the brush. He began to trace it across the statue, not even caring what shade of blue he had asked for.

The paint went on, then slid right off.

"What the hell?"

He looked at his partner. "You having the same problem?"

"Yes. And it's pissing me off."

Je-Dal tried a simple fix. "Purple."

It changed to a purple and he dashed another line across the surface. This one too didn't stick and slid right off.

"Fuck this" he muttered grasping the bucket. He tossed it into the wall and splattered paint all over it. This too slid to the floor where it disappeared from sight.

"There!" he exclaimed. "I don't have any paint."

He looked at his bucket. It was completely full of purple.

"Goddamn it!" he muttered kicking it as hard as he could.

He grabbed the mirror and looked at the man in it. "This damn paint doesn't work."

"I still expect a painted room."

"How about I serve my foot up your ass?"

"Oh my. So temperamental. Not at all charming. Not at all. I still want a painted room."

Je-Dal was about to punch a wall, then he stopped.

"Wait a second."

He looked into the mirror. "This room is painted. It's painted white."

The man laughed. "Finally! He gets it! Sometimes the best solutions are the easiest! Or something like that."

Instantly the buckets of paint and the brushes disappeared.

"Now I think you two deserve a reward for humoring my odd side."

Suddenly the appearance of the man changed. He still wore the odd outfit, but now his hair and eyes were radiating white. He looked albino in every way.

"Now I, Sheogorath, Daedric Prince of Madness, think this should suffice as payment."

Suddenly, the room was filled up to the ankles with Septims. Then it reached to the knees.

"I think this is good" stated Ewald gazing at the gold around him. There must be at least ten thousand. At least.

"Now I will tell you something my entertaining little mortals. You have about ten seconds to touch every piece of gold you want to keep."

"Not too bad…" started Je-Dal.

"But" interrupted Sheogorath, "You must touch them with your nose."

"What? Our nose?" questioned Ewald.

"Ten" began the Daedric Prince.

The two frantically began shuffling their faces into the gold, trying to touch as many pieces as possible. It was actually quite entertaining.

Suddenly, the gold vanished. Just as suddenly, two bags appeared in the center of the room. They were rather large and filled with septims.

"Good job my little playmates. Now, search through the gold and you'll find something rather odd."

"This is getting tiresome" muttered Je-Dal shifting through a bag.

"Let's just do this shit and get out of here" replied the Dunmer doing the same.

Finally, the Argonian came onto something odd. It was round and felt squishy.

He pulled it out. "This is a wedge of cheese."

"But not just any cheese mortal!" cried the Daedra. "This cheese is the supreme lord among cheeses! It can bend the minds of mortals and Daedra! It can ascend and seat itself among the gods themselves! Oh and it also tastes sinfully good on crackers. Add red wine and some assorted little Hors d'oeuvres…oh boy I know what I'm eating for lunch tomorrow! I've been good this long, I deserve it! But anyway, you also deserve this cheese. And the gold. Consider the gold like the crackers to go with the cheese. But I don't recommend eating the gold. Although it does taste good with duck sauce…Might want to try that again sometime. That is it! Gold with duck sauce Hors d'oeuvres. And the CHEESE! Now I really must go. I think I smell my casserole burning. Oh boy now I smell smoke. I'M COMING HONEY!"

The room instantly vanished and the two treasure hunters were now sitting on a small hill. Underneath them was a blanket with the two bags of gold in the center. Around it were various plates with several items on them. Including the cheese they had found.

Ewald shrugged and pulled out a knife. Cutting a small wedge out of it, he took a bite. He moaned and nodded in approval.

"He's right. This is good cheese."

**Damn it now I want cheese. Crap I shouldn't have done that.**


	15. Chapter 15

**If I may request something, I would want to know if any of you out there have a one-shot to add to this. Since I plan for this to extend as far as the Breton's story, I want to get some fresh ideas flowing in my head. Any ideas are appreciated. Thank you.**

"I'm bored" muttered Ewald lying on the sofa.

"Read a book" replied Je-Dal doing the same.

"But I hate reading!"

"How do you know? You can barely read."

"Well I hate things I can't do well! So up yours!"

The Argonian shook his head and kept reading.

The Dunmer began to sort through the mail he had gotten recently.

"Hey here's something!" he exclaimed holding up a letter. "Apparently there's this tournament thing going on at the College of Winterhold! Want to go?"

"No."

"Oh come on! It'll be fun!"

"No it won't. We'll get there, then you'll bitch about the cold, and then we'll go home early."

"No I won't!"

"That's what you did every time we've had jobs in Winterhold!"

"Well excuse me! That was in the winter!"

"It is winter now."

"Well let me find something else."

Ewald began looking again, trying to find anything. "I assume you don't want to join the Dawnguard?"

"Nope."

"But the picture is really badass!" countered the elf holding up the flyer. On it was a solitary man fighting off a legion of vampires around him. It was actually very well done.

"Well I will admit that is badass, but I personally don't like getting vampirism."

"Fair enough."

The Dunmer kept looking, getting really frustrated in the process.

"The world's turned to shit!" he yelled throwing the bundle of papers across the room.

"What the hell was that?!" shouted Darai.

"It's called None of Your Business!"

"Hey! I ain't no damn housewife! I hand-make those arrows and potions for you two hooligans out of the kindness of my heart!"

"Sure, kindness" muttered Je-Dal.

"I heard that you shriveled, old lizard!"

"Old? I am barely thirty."

"Well you're acting fifty."

The Argonian lied back on the couch. "Your damn wife is starting to annoy me."

"Hey, she's a good cook. Not to mention good in bed."

They slapped knuckles, as is tradition for brothers.

Ewald pulled out a bundle of leaves. "Since I predict that we won't be going anywhere, I think it's time for a good smoke."

He pulled out his pipe and placed a small amount of the leaves inside. He lit a match and set the leaves ablaze. Taking a deep puff, he blew it out his nostrils.

"Best leaf in the Reach" he muttered through the pipe.

"You smoke too much" pointed out Je-Dal.

"No I don't. I just do too little of everything else."

The reptilian thought about it. "Clever my friend."

"Thank you."

Someone knocked at their door and Je-Dal rose to answer it. He opened the door, expecting the robed man from before.

It was not. It was a new man, one he had never seen before.

"Who are you?" he asked curiously.

"A man who likes to think he is a friend" answered the man. He brushed a blond streak of hair from his face and adjusted his shirt. "Now I will offer my name. I am Deison."

Deison was obviously an Imperial by his skin tone and facial structure, resembling a royal of some sort. But his attire of a green shirt and brown pants sort of countered this.

"Do I know you Deison?' asked the Argonian.

"No. But I know you."

He held up his hand. On his finger was a ring. It was the same ring Je-Dal had been given by the robed man.

"Wait, are you a...?" began the Argonian.

"Dragonborn? No I am not. But you are. He usually sends me to give assignments to them."

"What assignments?"

Deison pulled out a map and handed it to him. "Me and the man have found many locations of interest for future Dragonborn. We have to evaluate them on skill sets and such, but we have found a few for you."

"What is inside these locations?"

"Words of Powers. And artifacts.

He checked the map. There were three locations all around Skyrim, one of which was actually on a small isle off the coast. All three would be at least three weeks journey and would require some preparation.

"Are all of these Nordic ruins?" asked Je-Dal.

Deison shrugged. "I don't know. My friend just says that he senses the Words, not their surroundings. But I would say prepare for the worst."

The Argonian nodded. "Thank you my good man."

"I probably won't return, so good luck and goodbye" stated the man walking off.

Je-Dal checked the map again and looked at Ewald. "We got something."

"Awesome. Now for my least favorite part of the job: supply shopping."

**Agreed Ewald. Shopping is the most damn annoying task on the planet.**


	16. Chapter 16

**Now I do hope you all will forgive me for tempting you with Him multiple times, but there are other references to other Dragonborn in these stories. Just look a little harder and it becomes apparent.**

Je-Dal calmly looked at the sea in front of him, enjoying the morning air. He and Ewald were on a ship to this odd island near Dawnstar. It taken them two weeks to get to Dawnstar, and they had to convince a naval captain to take them off his normal route.

Ewald stumbled up to the handrail that the Argonian was at and vomited into the sea. Unlike him, the elf had little to no natural sea-legs.

"I fucking hate ships" he muttered wiping his mouth.

"You hate a lot of things."

"Not that many. Spiders, snakes, pumpernickel. Oh, and ships. Definitely ships."

Ewald continued his vomiting and the reptilian looked out at the ocean again. "I don't see this island."

"It's there" commented the captain walking beside him. He specifically did this to avoid the vomit coming from the elf. "We pass this island a lot. I explored it once out of curiosity. There's nothing there."

"Oh there is" counted Je-Dal.

The captain shrugged. "Whatever. You know our agreement. You have twenty four hours to do what you want to do, then we leave you. Granted we are leaving you with a life-boat, but it really doesn't matter."

Ewald stopped his excreting of bile to look at the captain. "We'll be done by then. Don't worry."

"The only thing I'm worrying about is you getting vomit all over my ship."

The elf let out a barf and spat out a mouthful of bile. "I'll be careful. It's a necessary evil."

They finally saw the island towards the middle of the day. It was a small island, maybe a mile wide, and it had a set of large hills across the surface. At the north end was a large cliff side and an enormous cave with a beach inside. The captain said that the cave was the best place to land a boat.

"Now remember, twenty-four hours" stated the captain. "If you're not rowing out here by then, we leave you for dead. Understand?"

"Of course" replied Je-Dal stepping onto the dingy. "Now, our supplies?"

The captain motioned to his crew, who grabbed the four chests of supplies and hefted them into the small boat. Once that was done, Ewald got in, his face extremely pale.

"Can we go now? I want to feel some solid ground under my feet."

Je-Dal nodded and looked at the captain. "Lower it captain."

The captain gestured and the crew began to lower the dingy to the water below.

Once the boat hit the water, Je-Dal was paddling. He knew the basics of it and was sure he could figure it out.

"You really think they'd leave us?" asked Ewald getting slightly better now that he was sitting down.

"Definitely. We are Skyrim's minorities after all" muttered the Argonian.

"Assholes."

As they got closer, Je-dal was able to make out more details about the cave. It was indeed enormous, having a ceiling nearly twenty feet tall and thirty feet wide. Most of it was not filled with water, so it had a very large canopy and shimmered from the light below. The sand itself was slightly odd though. It hadlarge rocks in it, almost the size of apples.

"What kind of thing do you suspect is here?" inquired the elf.

"I hope something simple" replied Je-Dal.

"Well, when has anything we've ever been involved in been simple?"

It was true. They usually met things like Draugr and Daedra with such a great frequency that it really didn't shock them too much.

They landed on the shore and Ewald looked around. "I don't see a need to set up camp. This is a large island, and we need to get as much of it explored as possible."

Je-Dal nodded. "Let's just begin the exploration."

After about three hours, they had nearly half the island explored. So far the only interesting thing was the number of rocks that were on it. They were everywhere, from the beach to the forests to everywhere in between. They were all the same size, shape, and color, and it bothered the hell out of Je-Dal.

"Goddamn rocks!" he yelled throwing one as hard as he could.

It smashed into a tree and sparked when it did so.

"What the hell?"

He picked it up and examined it closely. It appeared to be like the other ones, but it wasn't. It was grey and rough, but it also glowed purple. It also felt electric, like it was emitting it or something.

"What the hell is this thing?" he muttered tossing it hand to hand.

"Hey check this out!" yelled his partner up ahead.

Je-Dal tossed the rock aside and went to Ewald. The elf was standing at the edge of the forest and into another grassland. The Argonian looked out and saw that a large ruin was placed in the center of it.

"Well he never mentioned this" muttered the reptilian.

It was not a typical Nordic ruin like they were used to. It consisted of a courtyard with several pillars all around it, many of which were in disrepair. Other than the wildlife poking from the stone floor, it didn't look that special.

"This thing is crazy" muttered Ewald stroking a pillar. "This almost looks like something from Cyrodiil. I have never seen these kind of symbols before."

Je-Dal walked into the center of the courtyard and heard something crack under his feet. Then his foot sank into it.

He yelped in surprise and felt his foot hit ground. It had barely fallen a foot at all, and landed on stone.

"What the hell?" he muttered grasping at the edges of the hole.

He grabbed the stone and pulled it out. Underneath the stone was a gap of darkness, and then a set of stone stairs.

"Well what do you know" he said smiling.

After pulling out enough, his partner began to notice. Ewald helped clear the stones and looked deeper inside.

"So, who wants to go into the hidden crypt first?"

**So there is something on that island...**


	17. Chapter 17

**Now this was a brillian thought I had and I love the child it produced. Please not that you cannot get pregnant from thoughts alone, so don't try it.**

Ewald looked in wonder at the marble walls around him as he trudged deeper into the crypt. They were ornately carved with symbols that even he couldn't translate.

"I don't get it. This isn't ancient human or Dwemer. What the hell is this place?"

Je-Dal shrugged. "I don't know."

They heard someone moving up ahead and immediately crouched down. Just as the person came by.

The first thing about him was that he was Altmer. The second thing was that his armor was very dark, almost midnight black. He wore a hood over his head and kept a large sword at his side. Around his neck was an amulet of Kynareth, one that shone in the darkness.

"Who the fuck is that?" muttered Je-Dal.

"I don't know."

"Judging by the blood on his sword, I don't think I should ask."

It was true. On the man's armor was stained blood and gore, along with his weapon. It was quite a contrast with the sleek and elegant feel he emitted with his wardrobe.

"How should I kill him?" asked the Argonian pulling out the Razor.

"Jugular. Definitely feeling the jugular right now."

The reptilian tiptoed towards the man and tried to determine where the vulnerable points of the armor were. It appeared that were was indeed a gap between the helmet and chest plate. Perfectly sized for a knife such as his.

He rose on steady feet and ran his knife calmly through the man's throat. The blood gushed from his neck and splattered across the stone. He caught the bleeding body and rested it slowly on the ground.

Motioning to his partner, he began to move farther into the crypt. It took a turn to the left and he slowly glanced around it.

In the next room was a large atrium of sorts that held an assortment of tables made of stone. They held a bunch of similarly dressed men and women that were conversing about something. But he did recognize something inside the room. On a hanging flag was a crest that he had seen multiple times. It was the symbol for the Thalmor.

"Oh shit" he muttered. "Ewald, we're getting…"

He turned and noticed that his partner was not sneaking behind him. The Dunmer was currently being held hostage by a Thalmor agent.

"Shit" he murmured pulling out his dagger.

He felt a blade across his throat and he stopped.

"Move and you die" spoke a voice in his ear. It was a feminine voice, something fairly odd in the ranks of the Thalmor.

"Don't worry. I ain't stupid."

"I severely doubt that, but whatever."

The woman turned him around to face her. She was wearing an extremely dark shade of Thalmor armor, almost completely black.

"Now, walk" she ordered pushing him towards the atrium. She looked over at Ewald and gave a cold grin. "You too handsome."

They were lead into the room like prisoners. Many Thalmor members looked up at them and raised eyebrows.

"Apparently we're a rare sight around here" muttered Ewald.

"Shut up" ordered the woman.

They were lead before the head table filled with three different people. The one on the left and center appeared to be military leaders of sort, with battle gear. The one on the right was a woman, wearing similar armor to the captor of the two adventurers. She was an Altmer with long blond hair that was barely kept inside her hood. On her chest were several daggers that were all the same size and shape. She looked like the woman who would enjoy tying up her mates and ravaging them.

"Wow, she's kinda hot" murmured the Dunmer.

"Don't even think about it" replied the woman imprisoning them. "She'll rip your dick off and feed it to you."

"Hmm, kinky" muttered Je-Dal.

Ewald gave a disgusted glance at him. "You're kidding right?"

"Shut up!" yelled the man in the center of the table. He looked at the two and the guard behind them. "Who the hell are they?"

"Prisoners sir. I found them lurking in our halls. They've already killed one of us."

The man glared at them. "Who are you? Stormcloak agents?"

"Highly unlikely sir" muttered the woman on the left. "They are Argonian and Dunmer. The freaking Stormcloaks are racist against them and would never allow them in their ranks."

The man on the left nodded. He not only wore typical Thalmor battle robes, but also carried a large broadsword. "I doubt these are enemies of ours my lord. I mean, they don't even look like soldiers."

The lord nodded. "I agree. I think they're spies of some sort."

"Spies? Well ain't that the biggest load of bull…" began Ewald.

The guard smacked him upside the face with her gauntleted hand. "Hold your tongue!"

"Stop!" ordered the woman on the left. She stood and walked over to the two prisoners. Reaching Je-Dal she grabbed him by the chin and looked into his eyes. Her eyes were extremely cold and were nearly empty.

"Put them in a cell" she ordered breaking eye contact.

"You have no authority to do that Xylia" stated the lord slightly offended.

"They were captured by my personal lieutenant my lord. They are my prisoners."

The lord scowled. "Fine, whatever. But I want them dealt with immediately."

"Yes my lord."

Xylia turned to her lieutenant. "Go off now. I'll escort these maggots."

They were lead to their cell by the woman captain at sword point. She was doing it calmly, as if she did it a thousand times a day.

"Don't even think about running" she warned jabbing Je-Dal with her sword. "I can throw this thing more accurate than you can shoot that bow."

"I doubt that."

"You know, if it wasn't physically impossible to mate with you, I'd call you cute."

Ewald looked back at her. "Well, I'm still here."

She jabbed him with the sword. "Keep walking."

"You're married anyway" reminded Je-Dal.

"Technically that marriage license only includes Whiterun Hold. After that it's free reign."

Xylia laughed. "I can understand that. But believe me, you can't handle me. I know spots that could drive you insane."

"Oh I love those spots" stated Ewald smiling. "I use those on my wife all the time."

Je-Dal shook his head. "Ugh, I didn't want to know that."

They finally go to their cell, although cell was a glamorous term. It was closer to a stone hole in the wall than anything else.

"Well this is the second time I have been forced to sleep in a stinky, stone hole. The first time was a roleplaying exercise."

"What happens in Solitude, stays in Solitude" muttered the Argonian who knew exactly what he was talking about.

"You know, if you tell me where you got something like this, then I might let you go" proposed Xylia raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, well then just enter the sewers from around the Bards College and take three left turns. You'll meet a guy named Larkius. Tell him that the coldest nights are the one that you spend alone. He'll let you into a wooden door and into a room. Inside that room are a collection of whores. Only females last time I checked. Just pay a thousand gold and you get one for a full day. Sadly you have to do what you want in one of their rooms. Thankfully it is basically the damn Imperial City in there."

"Oh, so it's covered in ash?"

Ewald laughed. "No, but it seriously is luxurious. Oh, and if you tell him I sent you, he'll give you a discount. Two for the price of one. Now, is that worth our freedom?"

Xylia thought about it. "No, not really. Good night."

Then she slammed the door shut and walked away.

"Bitch" muttered Ewald. "Now I'm going to die in a fucking hole. I'm using fucking as an emphasis word, not an adverb."

"I figured that" replied Je-Dal. He sat down on one of the straw bunks and sighed. "Well, this is the end."

"Yep. At least I won't die a virgin."

The Argonian gave him a sideways glance. "You lost your virginity when you were fifteen. You could've died long ago."

"Then I finally got all that I wanted."

Je-Dal sighed.

"It's too bad I didn't bag that Altmer though" muttered Ewald. "I would've done so much to her."

"It wouldn't have worked out. I can see chemistry, and there was nothing there."

"Perhaps. But you don't need chemistry for a one night stand."

The Dunmer leaned on the wall and yelped in surprise when the stone shifted. It literally shifted back into something and fell.

"So, this is odd" muttered Je-Dal. He went over to the wall and examined it. Punching another stone, he managed to reveal that the wall was hollow.

"So we got a secret tunnel out of a prison cell? I think she really did like me."

The Dunmer huffed. "Taking my women you asshole. You have scales and you're bagging the hot Altmer."

Je-Dal didn't comment, but he did keep moving stones.

"Hey, hey!"

Ewald turned and saw that the lieutenant was at the door. She didn't look surprised by their escape at all. She almost looked relieved even.

"While I hate this idea, I respect my captain's orders. You'll need these"

She handed them their weapons in a bundle through the door. "I can't get anything else though, so this is all I can get."

"This will due" muttered the Argonian. "It wasn't as if we had anything too valuable on us. I think I'm retiring after this shit."

"Yeah, so am I."

"Whatever" muttered the lieutenant. "Just get your dumbasses out of here before someone who does their job comes along."

"Roger" responded Je-Dal walking through the recently-made hole in the wall. "Come on Ewald."

The Dunmer nodded and gave a bow to the lieutenant. "Thank you madam."

"I heard you're married. I don't like a disloyal man."

"Well then thank you for your help. I need to get going."

Then he joined his partner in the hole.

The lieutenant shook her head and walked off. "Arrogant bastard."

**Funny. A tunnel in a prison cell? Hmm, I've heard that from somewhere. I think that was from Cyrodiil.**


	18. Chapter 18

**Now if any of you compared this to the prison escape from Oblivion, well, you're probably right in saying that it is very similar. Because, its a tunnel in a cell. Not exactly much you can do with that.**

Je-Dal walked down the recently made tunnel from his cell, scrapping the walls with his tail. No matter how much he tried to keep it from bothering it, it always reminded him that it was there.

"So, why would somebody build a damn tunnel, in the middle of a prison cell?" asked Ewald stepping over a large rock.

"Escape tunnel?"

"Well, that would make sense if this was a hallway or something. But this was in a prison cell. For prisoners. I doubt that they'd let anybody stand a chance of escaping."

They stopped when they saw a skeleton embedded between two stones. It looked like the rocks had fallen from above and crushed him.

"Well, that explains a lot" muttered Je-Dal.

"So we went from the frying pan to the furnace eh? Shit."

They kept walking, guided only by a Magelight spell from Ewald. He stopped and sniffed.

"What the hell is that?" inquired the Dunmer looking around.

The Argonian took a long drag. "It smells like…moss."

"Moss?"

"Yep."

"What the hell does moss smell like?"

"What we're currently smelling."

"Oh ha, ha. Very funny asshole."

They turned a corner and stopped dead. They found what smelled like moss.

It was an enormous cavern, so massive that they couldn't see the end of it. It had a large pool of water in the middle which made of more than half of the floor. It was lit by what appeared to be glowing mushrooms the size of humans. It made a pleasant blue-green aura all around the cavern and illuminated all the corners.

"Wow. This is beautiful" muttered Ewald.

Je-Dal nodded. "I have seen many things. This is incredible."

The Dunmer braced himself and drew his sword.

"What's the matter?"

"Something's wrong" replied Ewald. "Nothing can be this beautiful without something dangerous hidden within. Just like my ex-wife."

Je-Dal sniffed the air. "I don't know. The only thing I smell is the mushrooms and the moss."

The elf raised a hand and lit up a spell. "I got an idea."

He flared up his hand and emitted a wave of magicka. It stretched to the farthest corners of the room and came back to him.

"Well, it's clear" he muttered lowering the Detect Life spell.

"Good. Now, to find the way out."

They began to search the cavern, trying to determine where the exit was. Ten minutes later they hadn't found a single exit of any kind.

"Well this sucks. Now we're going to die here" murmured Ewald.

"Unless the Thalmor find us first" pointed out Je-Dal.

"I'd rather get a sword in my belly than starve to death."

"Same here."

The Argonian looked in the pool. He then realized that the pool didn't have a visible bottom.

"Wait, what if it's in there?" he asked crouching down next to it.

"Well, it's the only thing that makes sense at the moment" replied Ewald. He ran a hand through the water and took a sip.

"Well I'm not dying, so I assume that means it's all right."

They began to stride into it, Je-Dal with less hesitation. His race could naturally breath water without any difficulty.

Ewald raised a spell and cast it over himself. This was a Waterbreathing spell that he had learned back in Cyrodiil.

"Well, this will work for thirty seconds" said the Dunmer tightening the straps on his weapons. "Let's go."

They dove into the water and began to trail down. Even now it was still bright from the luminescent mushrooms above. The sides of the pool were made up of crystals that shone brilliantly in the light.

They took a turn and began to swim straight. They saw something come up and noted that it was a shoreline.

Ewald broke to the surface first. He gasped and flicked the wet hair from his face. "Ugh, I hate swimming."

"Yet again, something you hate" muttered Je-Dal wiping the water from his eyes.

"Well this isn't my natural territory" defended the elf. "I was given legs for a reason."

"Point taken."

They looked around at the shoreline and noticed something rather odd. It was full of the little stones that were on the island's surface. Except this time, they completely covered the ground.

"Ugh, this is weird" muttered the Argonian.

"Yeah. No kidding."

Suddenly, one of the rocks moved. It legitimately began to move and sprout legs.

"Ugh, what was in that water?" asked Ewald smelling his clothes.

"I don't think it was anything that big."

It skittered past them and calmly plopped into the water. Judging by the way it swam, it was some-sort of crab.

"So, a crab? They disguise themselves as stones eh?" muttered the Dunmer.

Then suddenly all the stones simultaneously began to move and shift.

"Shit!" yelled Je-Dal. He tried to keep his balance, but the small maritime creatures quickly took it from him. He fell into a pile of them and he began to fall into the water again.

Ewald leaped upwards and landed on the other side of the wave of crabs.

Once the flood of crabs had finally gotten into the water, the Argonian got out of the water.

"That…sucked" he muttered. He stopped and pulled out a crab from his pocket.

"Be free little guy" he said tossing it into the water.

"So all those stones on the island were crabs?" asked Ewald.

"Apparently so."

The Dunmer looked to his left. "Hey look, a way out."

It was indeed. It was a small little pool that was maybe two feet wide. It could just maybe hold them.

"If my sense of direction hasn't failed me, we should end up in the cavern through there" stated Je-Dal.

"How do you know?"

The Argonian cupped a palm of the water and sipped it.

"Salt water. Definitely near our ship."

"Well you go first since you can go faster" stated Ewald logically.

"Fine by mine."

The reptilian humanoid dropped into the small pool (more of a puddle) and began to make it through. It was fairly difficult, since he had to work his horns through.

"This sucks" he muttered to himself underwater. Since he could breathe, he could do so.

He finally managed to get him through and swam up to the surface on the other side.

It was indeed the cavern where their ship was. It was still there, safely tucked away. He could tell, since he smashed his head into it before he got to the surface.

Ewald popped up beside and gasped for air.

"Goddamn I never wanted to see this thing so much!" he yelled grasping at the edges of the ship.

Je-Dal looked around in confusion. The robed man had said that there was a Word Wall somewhere, but he hadn't found anything.

He stopped as he noticed something was close to his boat. It was a large stone that was underneath the water. It appeared to have shifted sometime after he left the ship.

He picked it up and looked at it. It had several etchings into it that appeared to be Dragon. Only three really stood out.

"Tiid Klo Ul" he read off the stone.

As he read them, he felt their power begin to work its way into his body. He smiled as he put the stone back.

"So he was right. Maybe this was worth taking the time to come here."

He stepped into the boat and Ewald looked at him. "So, now where should we go?"

Je-Dal pulled out the map he had hidden in his armor.

"I was thinking the one near Karthwasten."

"Smart idea. But we are definitely going home first. I need a good, fresh, hot roast deer before I can relax."

Je-Dal nodded and picked up the oars. Sliding them into the slots, he began to row back to the ship.

**Now to the second location!**


	19. Chapter 19

**So now we get back to good all dungeonering (yes it is not a word but who gives a crap?). Now this story isn't going to last that much longer, so I'll enjoy it while it lasts. **

"You know, I thought we were going to legitimately retire this time" muttered Ewald stepping through the ruin carefully.

"Well, I was joking" replied Je-Dal, his bow fully notched.

"Oh good. I was too."

"Well no shit. You're still here."

When they had gotten back from the small Thalmor island, they went back home to resupply. About three days ago they had set out to Karthwasten. Now they were here, inside what appeared to be a Nordic ruin.

"I am so grateful we finally get something that makes sense" said Ewald stepping over a stone.

"Why is that?"

"Think about some of the weird shit we've done in the last few months! A bound dragon, Mehrunes Dagon, Stormcloaks, vampires, Sheogorath, Thalmor, and freaking stone crabs!"

"I'm not sure the stone crab one is that significant" pointed out the Argonian.

"It is when I nearly drowned in those little bastards!"

They stopped as they turned a corner in the ruin. It was a beautiful and semi-frustrating sight.

The ruin had apparently begun to disintegrate, as evidenced by the sheer condition it was in. An entire section of the large atrium they were now in was completely gone, as if some god had just swiped through it. Now there was about a ten foot gap between their section and the other one.

"Well shit" muttered Ewald. "How do we get across?"

Je-Dal peered over and noticed something. It was a drawbridge system set up on the other side of the ravine. It was apparently a recent edition to the ruin, since it wasn't covered in rust or wood rot. But that didn't mean anything if they couldn't get to the other side where the lever was.

The reptilian looked up and noticed that a few sections were still held together. They were about twenty feet off the ground, but he knew how he could reach it.

"I'll be back" he muttered stringing up his bow.

"Back from where?" asked Ewald.

The Argonian didn't reply. Instead, he began to climb the column next to him, using his clawed hands and feet to grip it.

"Ah, doing the old acrobatic stuff" muttered the Dunmer. "The stuff I suck at. Well, I guess I'll wait here."

Je-Dal reached the top of the column and noticed a hanging chandelier. Aligning himself, he leaped onto it and braced for the fall.

Since the chandelier didn't fall, he tried to figure out where to go next.

He looked up into the ceiling. There was a large enough gap in there to where he could probably fit.

He grabbed the chandelier's chain and began to climb slowly. Despite the sturdiness of the construction, it was never meant to hold his weight.

He reached the end and grabbed an edge of the hole. Swinging himself gracefully, he managed to wedge himself into the hole so that he could remain up.

"Ugh, this is my least favorite part" he muttered. He was now hanging fully from the ceiling with no game plan. Shit.

He climbed through the gap and saw that he was now fully outside the ruin. He then began to walk over the rock ledge spanning the two rooms, very delicately.

He looked down and noted that the gap between them was a gaping abyss. He hadn't noticed that at ground level.

"Shit I looked down" he noted fearfully.

He finally got to the other room and began to figure a way down. Then he got a better idea.

"FIEM ZI GRON!" he yelled leaping off the roof.

His body glowed blue and he felt himself lighten significantly. When he hit the floor below, he didn't feel it at all.

The effect disappeared and he walked over to the lever. Pulling it, the bridge dropped over the ravine, allowing Ewald to pass.

"Well that was entertaining" said the Dunmer. "But I would prefer to have something I could do."

Just then a coffin at the other end of the room opened up. The lid flew off violently and out stepped a Draugr Deathlord.

"Like that" muttered Ewald happily drawing his swords.

Je-Dal notched his bow and fired a glass arrow at the undead. It barely flinched and kept running to them.

Ewald raised one of his hands and he was immersed in flames. He then began to swing violently with his swords.

"Come on you maggot ridden son of a bitch!" yelled the Dunmer spinning madly. "Let's see what you got!"

"FUS RO DAH!" roared the Draugr.

Ewald landed on his ass a few yards away and shook the dizziness from his head. "Wow. So that's what you got."

Je-Dal fired another arrow and embedded it into the Deathlord's eye. He roared in anger and began to run towards the Argonian.

The reptilian drew his Razor and embedded it into the Draugr's chest. It died instantly when he did so.

Je-Dal shoved it off his dagger and wiped it clean.

"Man I wish I could have a weapon that badass" muttered Ewald standing back up.

"It's a fine dagger."

"Well whatever. Let's keep going."

They walked out of the torn atrium and came to a tunnel. It very familiar, since it was one of the Nord's typical puzzle doors.

"Well I've seen this before" muttered Ewald. "Now this door can only open with the right combination and key. But we don't have a key."

He looked to his left and saw that there was a corpse of some long forgotten adventurer in the corner. And in his hands was a dragon claw made of malachite.

"This is odd" muttered the Dunmer lifting the key. "This guy's corpse indicates that he was running away from what's on the other side of the door."

He took a bone from the corpse and sniffed it. "Smells like ash."

"I don't like the sound of that" replied Je-Dal.

"Well there's two of us, and we got amazing weaponry. Come on, let's at least have a peek."

He moved the appropriate rings on the door until the combination read what was on the claw. Then he inserted the claw into the door.

The door began to move down, scratching against something as it did so. It sounded like stone scraping on stone.

"Never heard a door do that" noted Je-Dal.

"Let's just see why it was doing that" replied Ewald.

The door finished dropping and they gasped at what they saw.

The room before them was covered in bones. Seriously, the entire floor didn't have a centimeter of space that wasn't covered. It was like a century's worth of bodies had just been dumped and left to rot in this place.

"Merciful Almalexia" murmured Ewald feeling nauseous.

Je-Dal looked at the other things that were in the room. It appeared that something had nested inside of the ruin. Something hungry.

"We need to leave, now!" ordered the Argonian grabbing his partner.

"Why? What is it?"

"Don't you see? Whatever is in there is far too powerful to mess with! Those bones are the proof of it!"

Suddenly a noise emitted from the room. It sounded like powerful laughter. It shook the entire structure with its acoustics.

"Yeah, let's go" agreed Ewald.

They sprinted back to the atrium and began to walk over the bridge.

The laughter increased in volume and suddenly the bridge snapped in half.

"Shit!" yelled Ewald falling into the ravine.

They landed at the bottom, about twenty feet below. Not that much of a drop, or at least as large as they had predicted. It appeared to be an optical illusion of some sort.

"Now how do we get out?" muttered Ewald.

"I don't know" answered his partner.

The laughter increased again, then it gave way to words.

"Foolish mortals. You cannot hide from Bahlok, lord of all that hungers."

**Now I need to spill something. I have made a forum labeled Ways of the Dragonborn, so that you all can ask questions and stuff about the story. I would greatly appreciate if you did so since my Editor can't always keep up with answering them.**


	20. Chapter 20

**This is so entertaining to write. It's like writing Bleach and Regular Show in one motion. Both good shows if you haven't watched either by the way.**

"Why do I get the feeling that we're going to die?" asked Ewald looking around the ravine.

"Well, there's the ominous ass person laughing at us. And if my research is right, Bahlok means 'Hunger' in Dragon" replied Je-Dal.

"Yep. We are gonna die."

The Dunmer lay on the stone floor of the hole, putting his hands behind his head. "Well, if I'm gonna die then I won't die tired. If he really wants to eat us, then he can come get us."

The laughter stopped_. "What? Your souls are so, potent, yet you do not move. Why? Did you break something? Are you feeling ill?"_

"No, we just don't feel the need to do anything" replied Je-Dal. Since he didn't know where to talk to, he decided that the sky was the best target place.

"_Why? Is the way out too hard to find?"_

"There's a way out?" asked Ewald looking around.

"Not exactly!" yelled Je-Dal. "We just think that if you really are as powerful as you say, then why should we try to resist?"

"_Well…because…"_ spoke the voice.

"So if you really are Bahlok, lord of hunger, then why should we, petty mortals, fight you? It doesn't make any sense!"

The voice stopped_. "That does make sense."_

"Yeah, so do whatever the hell you planned to do. We won't move."

The voice was getting angry. _"You WILL move! Or I will…"_

"What? Kill us? Doesn't that do the same thing?"

"_Ugh…that has a good point. So ugh, this is some sort of standoff then."_

"Yes it is, Mr. Ominous Voice Dude" responded Ewald.

The voice paused for a full thirty seconds. _"How about this? If you get out of this crevice and defeat me, I offer you the finest assortment of loot this side of Tamriel."_

"And if we just stay here?" asked the Argonian.

"_Then you'll simply starve to death."_

The two adventurers shared a glance. It was a no-brainer.

"Sure. But, how do we get out of this crevice?"

Suddenly, a bright light emitted from one end of the crevice. It showed that there was a small tunnel leading to somewhere.

"Thank you" stated Je-Dal notching his bow.

"_You're welcome."_

They began to follow the tunnel. Unlike every single damn tunnel they have ever explored, it was dry, it was well-lit, and there was no wild things waiting for them.

"This is nice" said Ewald feeling the walls of the tunnel.

"_Thank you."_

The Dunmer stopped. "That whole voice thing is starting to scare me."

"_Apologies. But this is the only way I can communicate with you."_

"Fair enough, Mr. Ominous Voice Dude."

They kept going, anticipating anything. Seriously, anything. With the kind of record streak they had, they half-expected a naked, flaming Breton to come charging at them. One of them slightly hoped that happened.

"So ugh, how long does this tunnel go?" asked Je-Dal to the ceiling again.

"_Um, I forgot" admitted the voice_.

"You live here and you forgot your own tunnel?"

"_That's not my fault mortal! They designed this place to contain me! I was dead when they made it!"_

"Fair enough Bahlok."

Finally they reached the end of the tunnel. The new room was a large atrium of sorts with a large number of platforms leading up to the ceiling.

"Is this your chambers?" asked Ewald looking around.

"_Ugh, not sure where you are. Describe it."_

"Dark, depressing, dirty."

"_Gonna have to be a little more specific mortal."_

"Ugh, there's a giant ass coffin in the middle of the room?"

"_Still need more details."_

"Platforms everywhere?"

"_Oh no. That's not mine. Keep going."_

Suddenly every coffin in the room, including the large one in the center, burst open simultaneously, revealing the Draugr dwelling inside.

"_Oh, and you might want to deal with the Draugr first of course."_

"Fine by me!" yelled Ewald drawing his swords.

"SOCIAL ACTIVITY!" he exclaimed running into the crowds of undead.

Je-Dal rolled his eyes and fired an arrow, instantly downing a Draugr.

The Dunmer was having the best time in his life. Not only was he surrounded by about seven different Draugr who were all trying to kill him, they all were Draugr Deathlords! It couldn't have been better for him.

"Oh, ninety-nine Draugr skulls on the wall, ninety-nine Draugr skulls on the wall! Take one off and kick it around! Ninety-eight Draugr skulls on the wall!"

The Argonian was so busy shooting he couldn't comment. Nevertheless, he managed to roll his eyes for a full second. Why did his partner have to be so damned foolish?

The reptilian quickly notched another shot and smashed it into a Draugr's skull. It then fell from its elevated position and slammed into one his partners underneath him, killing him instantly.

"Convenient" muttered Je-Dal reloading his bow.

After a few minutes, the entire room was clear of Draugr. Statistically, Je-Dal got fifteen kills while Ewald got twelve.

"That. Was. Awesome" muttered the elf wiping his brow.

"Agreed."

"_I found that most entertaining."_

The Dunmer looked up. "Aren't these your men?"

"_No. They're the assholes who buried me here! I like that you're killing them!"_

"I think our little friend is sociopathic" muttered Je-Dal.

"_I heard that mortal!"_

The Argonian chuckled and looked for the next door.

After finding the door, they kept going into the ruin.

"I must ask Bahlok, what is this place called?" inquired Ewald.

"_Oh, that's fairly simple. It's called Revakahrol."_

"What does that mean?"

"_Sacred Hill."_

"We're in a valley you know."

"_Yeah. I think it was a hill like a hundred years ago."_

They finally got to the final room. They could tell because there was a big ass Word Wall at the end of the room.

"Well, I think we found it" muttered Je-Dal.

"No shit" replied Ewald.

"_No shit."_

The coffin at the end opened and something rose from it. Well, something was a little vague. It was a Dragon Priest, but something was off. It had a white mask instead of any other color, and it was shaped twice as large as normal. Not to mention the giant mouth on his chest.

"_Hello mortals"_ said Bahlok through the mouth in his chest. Obviously his mask covered something that resembled a head but had none of the functions.

"Hey."

"Sup."

The Priest looked at them curiously. _"So, you're here."_

"Yep."

"Yep."

"_I did promise that if you killed me I would give you loot, didn't I?"_

"Yep."

"Yep."

The Priest sighed and cracked its knuckles. "Well, I prefer to keep my promises."

Ewald lifted his hand and blasted a massive ball of fire towards the Priest.

Instead of putting up a Ward or dodging, the Priest opened its mouth and swallowed the ball whole.

"Ok, what the hell just happened?" asked Ewald amazed.

"It appears he can eat energy" noted Je-Dal.

"_Correct mortal"_ spoke Bahlok smiling. _"I can consume any amount of energy. And I can do this."_

He opened his mouth wide and emitted a solid beam of energy. They both dodge just in time to watch it explode when it hit a wall.

"Holy shit that's cool!" yelled Ewald.

"Only you could see this as a positive thing" muttered Je-Dal trying to formulate a strategy.

"_It is pointless mortals. My body is already dead, so physical damage does nothing. And I can absorb energy, so magicka is useless too. Either you can leave now, or die."_

"Shit he's right" murmured the Argonian. He stopped and thought long and hard.

"I got an idea! Ewald, prepare a fireball!"

"Didn't you see what happened last time?"

"I know! But wait until he gasps in pain to launch it!"

The Dunmer shrugged and raised one of his hands. "Fine."

Je-Dal sprinted into the shadows and leaped upwards. Since his armor was completely black, he was virtually invisible.

"_Does your friend think mere assassination will kill me_?" asked Bahlok looking at Ewald. _"He is foolish. I cannot die from any knife."_

"Oh, he always has a smart idea" defended Ewald concentrating the fireball.

Just then Bahlok felt a knife enter his back. Unlike all the other blades that have pierced his body, this one felt unholy. Like it had been dipped into ichor, the substance that killed gods.

He screamed in pain and the Dunmer released the fireball.

Like normal, it was quickly consumed by the mouth in his chest. But then something came right in after it.

Je-Dal felt the inside of Bahlok's chest, grimacing intensely.

"What? Aren't you gonna release it?" asked the Argonian.

"_Aaagh, aagh"_ choked Bahlok. He literally had a fist down his throat.

"Well then, I think there's only one thing to do" said Je-Dal. He then opened his hand and smiled.

Instantly, Bahlok burst into flames. He choked/screamed in agony and began to wither.

Je-Dal withdrew his hand and whipped off the flames. He literally had caught a fireball in his fist.

"Well, that was awesome" muttered Ewald walking over to his partner.

"Yeah."

"Gonna read that Wall now?"

"Why not?"

The Dragonborn walked over to the Wall and read the glowing words off them.

"Su Grah Dun" he read. He looked up and smiled. "Sounds awesome."

**If you didn't know, that Shout is Elemental Fury. Pretty good Shout in my honest opinion.**


	21. Chapter 21

**Well, chapter 21. The farthest I've gotten in a story before. A landmark for me. Awesome.**

"So, this is the last location the mysterious robed dude gave us?" asked Ewald walking up the slope of the mountain.

"Yep."

"Well I'm grateful. Because I am freezing my balls off."

The two adventurers were currently trekking up a mountain near the Windhelm. As everything in Windhelm is, it was cold.

"This mountain is colder than my ex's heart" noted the Dunmer.

"I knew you were going to say that" replied Je-Dal.

"How?"

"You said that last time we went to Winterhold. It was just as cold then. And it's just as cold now."

They managed to get to an overhanging ledge where there was some cover. It was so cold that the water in their canteens had frozen.

"Ugh, how damn high is this mountain?" asked Ewald shivering violently.

"Pretty high" answered the Argonian.

"Well I think I might die."

"Yeah, same here."

Suddenly, the wind stopped dead in its tracks. The snow completely disappeared and it suddenly felt warmer.

"OK, I'm slightly concerned" muttered Je-Dal.

"Who cares? Let's just get going!"

They began to practically run up the mountain, enjoying the newly warmed air. For some reason, it felt like the air was rich with magicka.

"Do you think someone stopped the weather?" asked Je-Dal lokoing around.

"Is that possible?"

"Maybe."

They finally got to a ledge and saw that there was something there. It was a set of stone stairs leading upwards.

"Well I think we finally found where we needed to be" stated Ewald climbing the steps.

They began to journey upwards, not knowing what to expect. It could literally be anything. For all they knew, there was a hungry dragon with two man-shaped holes in its stomach.

"Well, if someone did stop the weather, I am glad they did."

They finally reached the top and noticed something rather odd. First of all, there was a dragon corpse lying in the middle of the plateau. Second, there was an old gentlemen sitting on a small rock next to the corpse.

"Uh, hello?" said Ewald slightly nervous.

The old man smiled and looked up. "Oh good morning gentlemen. I was just wondering if I would get visitors today. And look! You are here!"

"Yes, we are" stated Je-Dal looking at the man. He wore a simple white kimono with a straw hat and black pants. He looked like a hermit then someone who resided on a mountain top.

"Why are you gentlemen here?"

Ewald answered. "We were looking for a Word Wall. Do you know what that is?"

The man nodded. "Of course. Then I can only assume you work for Him."

The two treasure hunters shared a glance. "Him?"

"Oh yes, Him. He visits from time to time, talking about his business. He says that he has a lot of work that needs to get done. But I'm too old to help. So I just stay here, and guard this spot."

"What's so valuable about this spot?" asked Je-Dal.

The old man shrugged. "I'm not sure how to explain it. Nothing is special. It's what I believe that makes it special."

"Well that's great for you man, but where is this Word Wall?"

"Oh I am so terribly sorry. Please follow me."

The old man got up and began walking to a small shack.

When he reached the shack, he stepped inside quickly and pulled grabbed a small pipe. He then lit the pipe and kept walking.

"Now I must ask are either of you Dragonborn?" asked the old man inhaling the tobacco smoke.

They shared a nervous glance. The guy did say that he worked with the robed man, but that didn't mean he could be trusted.

The old man seemed to understand. "Well it doesn't really matter. I'll probably figure it out anyway. Now I do know that He sent you here. Only people he knows of are allowed to come here."

"Yeah, we know Him" answered Ewald.

"Good. Then I can trust you."

They reached another set of stairs and began to climb to the top of the mountain. The old man seemed completely unfazed by the cold around him, despite the light coverings he wore.

"I must admit, I love living here. Beautiful landscapes, refreshing morning air."

"Not to mention dragons" muttered Ewald.

The old man smiled. "Well yes, there are dragons. Occasionally they try to nest here, but it never works out."

They got to the top of the mountain and the two adventurers final found the Word Wall. It was just the same as the other ones, except there was a dragon on top of it.

The old man smiled. "Just a second."

He emptied his pipe and grabbed the tip of his hat. Flinging it into the air, he disappeared from sight.

The hat flew through the air and passed right across the dragon's line of sight.

Something split then hat clean in half and cut a long vertical slash directly into the dragon's skull.

It collapsed, never actually seeing what had hit it.

With a similar motion to how he disappeared, the old man reappeared, his hat completely intact. He adjusted it slightly and relit his pipe.

"Now, don't you have some words to be reading?" asked the old man puffing on the pipe.

Ewald was staring wide-eyed at the man. "Did you just cut a dragon head in half?"

The old man looked at the dead dragon. "Hmm. I guess I did. Funny. I meant to decapitate it."

"How?" all the Dunmer was able to get out.

"Well it was simple. I just did a little Alteration."

"That's Alteration!" yelled Ewald.

"Yep."

"Holy crap!"

Je-Dal decided to ignore them both. Naturally absorbing the dragon's soul, he stepped over its corpse to reach the Word Wall. He then read the three words on it.

"Strum Bah Qo."

The old man smiled. "Ah yes. My personal favorite Shout. Now I do apologize, but I have some meditating to do."

He began to walk back to his stone, but the Argonian stopped him.

"Wait. I need to know, did the robed man say anything about me?"

The old man thought about it. "Ugh, no. Wait, is your name Je-Dal?"

"Yes."

"Oh. Then this is for you."

He handed him a letter that was still sealed. "Don't open it here. Wait till you get home."

The reptilian was severely tempted to open it now, but he decided to accept the old man's warning.

"Now, good day to you all."

Then he left them to resume his meditation.

**Don't worry. HIM and the old man will be recurring characters. I don't leave any ends open. Just read some of my older stuff to figure that out.**


	22. Chapter 22

"Well I've been waiting this long, so let's see what it is!" said Ewald extremely excited.

Je-Dal felt the same level of anticipation, albeit he hid it very well. He pulled out the letter the old man gave him and slit his claw along the opening. Taking out the single piece of paper, he read it carefully.

* * *

_Dear Je-Dal,_

_ I am glad to see that you got to my friend on the mountain. Because of my extraordinary arithmetic skills and observation of your traveling habits, I presume you have already visited the other sites by the time you get this letter. Now onto business._

_I would like to say that you are one of the few Dragonborn I have contacted directly. Most of them I can contact through people like Deison. But this letter is about you, not them. _

_I must admit though, you are the most unorthodox Dragonborn next to me. You don't have a company behind you, nor an army. You simple hunt for loot, which I can respect. I did my fair share of that in my days. Now I must ask something of you: Do not let yourself get hired. The worst thing that could happen is you getting tied down in some organization that complicates your opportunities to fulfill your duties as Dragonborn. This may be too much to ask, but I need to ask it. Very few of the Dragonborn are free from complications such as loyalty and leadership. _

_I must also ask you to continue exploring Skyrim for all manner of ruins. Many have information on Alduin and the dragons, and we need as much of that as possible. Not to mention the loot and money you can collect would greatly help us when we come together (All the Dragonborn, not just you and me). _

_I cannot say when I will need your help, since the day of our reckoning can happen anytime. Rest assured though, because of people like you and me, that day won't be soon._

_Your Friend_

* * *

Je-Dal read the letter again and sighed. "Well, that's interesting."

He handed it to Ewald, who took a little longer to read it. Being partially illiterate didn't help.

"Ugh, I barely started reading a month ago" muttered the Dunmer. "But I got the base message."

The Argonian rubbed his temples. "And yet again he didn't give his name. But I do appreciate the letter."

The Dunmer lay back on the couch, putting his boots on the armrest. "What are we gonna do?"

Je-Dal flipped the letter over and saw that there was a hand-drawn map on this side. It apparently led to somewhere in the middle of the northern sea. He smiled.

"We got places to loot."

**I hate to say it, but this story is done! I decided that if I went too far, I'd spoil far too much of the overall series. However, the forum I have on this series is still available and I will answer any questions so long as it isn't a spoiler. Not to mention the Breton story is still going on and will continue for a little while. Now I hate abandoning these guys, but you either die a good story, or live long enough to see yourself turn to crap.**


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